S.K. Nicholls's Blog, page 34
October 10, 2014
21 Facinating Facts About Florida
I am constantly looking up Florida facts and details for my regional writing. Sometimes these little tidbits end up in my books. I compiled this list from a variety of resources:
Florida was not acquired by the U.S. until 1821
The Seminole Tribe of Florida is a Federally Recognized Indian Tribe, the only tribe in America who never signed a peace treaty.
The bridge to Keys was completed from 1909 to 1912. The Seven Mile Bridge, that crosses between Marathon and the Lower Keys, was built in 1982 – in pieces – then shipped to the Keys to be assembled.
The railroad to Key West was completed in 1912.
Key West has the highest average temperature in the United States.
Founded in 1565, Saint Augustine is the oldest European settlement in North America.
The name Punta Gorda, which means, “fat point” when translated from Spanish. The moniker was given to the city because a broad part of the land in Punta Gorda juts into Charlotte Harbor. The harbor itself is somewhat unique, as it is the point where the Peace River meets the ocean. (We have a sea-walled piece of property for sale there if you are looking to buy.)
Orlando attracts more visitors than any other amusement park destination in the United States.
The United States city with the highest rate of lightning strikes per capita is Clearwater, near Tampa, but it is also in the Guinness Book of World Records as having the most days of sunshine.
Young aviator Tony Jannus made history on January 1, 1914 when he flew the world’s first scheduled passenger service airline flight from St. Petersburg’s downtown yacht basin to Tampa.
The Saint John’s River is one of the few rivers that flows north instead of south.
Miami installed the first bank automated teller machine especially for rollerbladers.
Nearly 80 percent of the states intake of sweet Atlantic white shrimp is harvested in Amelia Island waters. Two million pounds of shrimp are delivered to Fernandina docks annually.
Florida has 2276 miles of tidal shoreline and about 4500 islands larger than 10 ACRES, and 663 miles of beaches.
Greater Orlando is home to 71 skyscrapers. The Suntrust Building is tallest at 441 feet.
Highway patrol officers lose their bonuses if they are more than 15 pounds overweight.
There are 52 million annual visitors to Walt Disney World Resorts.
There are more than 400,000 hotel rooms and 37,000 restaurants in the tri-county area (Orange, Osceola and Seminole) , 144,125 of the hotel rooms are in Orlando.
Key West has more bars per capita than any other location in the country.
The deepest river in the world, reaching 90 feet of depth and only nine miles is the New River. It was named by native Americans the New River because at one time it flowed underground.
Florida produces half the United State’s winter vegetables.
Filed under: Fascinating Florida Tagged: Florida, fun facts, regional writing, research
October 8, 2014
A Missing Link
Many of you know that my mother died when I was eight. It was suicide, or accidental overdose depending on who you talk to. Either way, she was gone.
There are things that people don’t have the right mind to think about before they do something like that. Take pills to ease their pain until there is no conscious knowledge that one has found any relief.
I grew up without a mother, and I managed and did okay, but there are still effects of that dreadful event 45 years later and I’m going to mention one now. The motherless daughter as a parent.
My daughter was raised by a mother who had no mother. Her mother never had anyone to hold her or hug her when she was feeling despair, loneliness, fear, or pain. Her mother did not have anyone to call her to inquire about her day. Her mother wiped her own tears. No one ever helped her mother with her children or household. There was no one to answer those questions that only a mother can answer. God is good, but God is not your mother.
Sometimes parenting was confusing to her mother because she had no real role model. She had grandmothers who were loving and kind, but there was a missing link. Always. Grandmothers are not the same as mothers.
Her mother went to college to learn how to care for others. Seriously. And she went on to have an excellent career in nursing, but with all of those school hours and work hours, she wondered constantly if she was giving her own daughter what she needed from a role model.
I loved my daughter, hugged her, wiped her tears, offered her encouragement and hope and always wondered if I was doing the right things by her. She had a few years of strife even I could not cope with well. There were times when there was only bitterness between us.
So when my daughter delivered her second child at home and needed help with the household, I called a housekeeper to come in and do the work of cleaning for a day. It wasn’t much, but it was all I knew to do. I don’t believe it was enough. What she needed most was for mom to be close.
Well, today, my daughter, upon hearing about my agony in back pain, came over to get my heating pad off the top shelf in the closet. She set me up in my bed for comfort and gave me fresh fruit with yogurt for breakfast. She gave me hugs, then cooked bacon for my lunch, cut up tomatoes and lettuce. She cleaned last night’s supper dishes and loaded the dishwasher. We chatted a while. We hugged some more. It was a much warmer time, I’m sure, than if she had hired someone to come over and attend to me. She was here for me.
She’s grown up just fine.
I’m still learning to be a motherless parent.
You see, it takes generations to overcome what a suicide will do. I see my daughter nurturing my granddaughter and feel the warmth in her nurturing me and know everything is going to be okay.
I am truly blessed. Thank you, daughter. You are appreciated.
Filed under: The Grandmother Journal Tagged: comfort, grandmothers, motherless daughter, mothers, nurture, pain, suicide, the missing link
Out of Commission
I am going back to bed with a good book. Low back pain. I won’t be visiting any blogs for a while because when I sit down in my chair, I can’t get back up. I have Skelaxin and a heating pad. Just know I’m not trying to ignore anybody on purpose today. I closed comments because I won’t see them anyway. Maybe I’ll come back later this afternoon if I’m feeling better. My dogs freak out every time I yell, so I best get somewhere and be still for a while.
Filed under: Healthy Lifestyle Tagged: back pain, ouch
October 7, 2014
Is this Mass Suicide?
When I first came out with Red Clay and Roses, I told my millionaire cousins about the book. I mentioned that it was only $3.99. My cousin’s wife remarked, “Oh, we have a site where we get all of our digital books for free.” I suggested they support a starving author. “Why, when there is so much out there to read for free? We haven’t paid for a book in five years.”
Maybe that’s why they are millionaires.
I’m being facetious. But I was offended. My own family would not pay $4.00 to read my book. Hell, I would have given them a free copy if they had expressed any interest.
If you have a series, I can understand the first book in the series being discounted. That’s a great opportunity for you to strut your stuff and build your audience, but I’m wondering if keeping books priced low is working to our collective advantage.
Some individuals have told me that their genre or their style of books only sells at lower prices. I wonder if that is the impatience of the author desiring a quick return.
I was noting the apps in the app store for my phone. You can barely find children’s apps for fewer than five dollars. Some are free, but they are crappy. The good ones are always going to cost you ten dollars, or more, because they know you are going to want the great ones for your kids/grandkids.
I’ve reviewed some terrific indie books on this site, so you know that I know there is a lot of good writing out there. Yet, if I wasn’t an indie supporter because I’ve also self-published would I be one of those who buys books only when they are marked for sale? You know they are going to be…BookBub, Ereader News Today, EBookie, Ereader Books, FreeBookSpot, FreeeBooks, ManyBooks, GetFreeeBooks…I could go on and on, but you get the point.
So very much out there to read, I would never run out of reading material. There are hundreds of places to get free books and if I am just an average reader, why should I spend any money on yours? About the only reason, would be if your free book was the first in a series or trilogy and I want to know what happens next.
We have created this FREE monster by collectively jumping on the bandwagon.
If you were an average reader who did not have a blog and had not been introduced to indies, what would entice you to read a book? It’s popularity? Endorsement by people you respected? A well-known brand/author? Word-of-mouth from people who share your interests and know what you like to read?
I have been on forums where people made comments that they would not pay less than five dollars for a book because they KNOW anything less than that is trash. Hundreds agreed in that thread. Really?
You are really craving ice cream. If I told you that you could have this really cool vanilla ice cream cone for free, or you could pay ten dollars for the chocolate one, which one are you going to take?
I have an author friend who has vowed not to give his books away anymore and won’t be doing anymore sales. His price is set at about $5.00. He wants his books to sell by word of mouth on their own merit. Is that literary suicide in today’s market? Is that suicide for an indie author?
Should we all try that?
What would happen if we did?
Filed under: Marketing Tagged: author suicide, discounted books, free book sites, free books, indies, sales
Feelin’ lucky? Enter my Goodreads Occasional Soulmates giveaway
Enter for your chance to win an exceptional novel. Or just buy it :)
Originally posted on WHAT THE HELL:
Goodreads Book Giveaway
Occasional Soulmates
by Kevin Brennan
Giveaway ends November 05, 2014.
See the giveaway details
at Goodreads.
Filed under: Uncategorized
October 6, 2014
Support an Author, Support a Business
Well said.
Originally posted on Mysti Parker:
Being an author is a difficult and often lonely business. Yes, I said business, because soon as we put something out there for retail sale, we’ve officially evolved from hobby to business. The vast majority of us are indie authors, whether self-published, small press-published, or freelance, which means support in terms of both financial and word-of-mouth is vital. Without the six figure backing of a “big six” publisher, we are small business owners, just like the guy who owns the diner down the street or the woman who owns the consignment shop or the friend who sells Avon. 
Often our efforts to spread the word and sell our product fall on deaf ears, lost in the crowd of the millions of other authors out there trying to do the same. Many times, support can feel very one-sided, particularly when we have done a great deal to support family and friends in…
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Filed under: Uncategorized
October 5, 2014
Beading and Other Things I Like to Do
This is my “everything” blog. Of course I read quite a bit, and love to write, but sometimes words overwhelm me. I need to take a break from the literary scene and do something different. Most of you know I paint in watercolors and oils. Not often, but the urge strikes now and then. It is messy and takes a lot of time. I also like to garden.
Looking for a hobby? I have another hobby. I like to make jewelry. Years ago, I only wore fine jewelry and would dare not wear costume jewelry. Then I found the Bead Bar. It is a place in College Park that stocks drilled stones and gems like jasper and amethyst, turquoise and sterling silver, pearls and polished woods. I use a lot of lapis lazuli because it looks so nice with jeans, but it is increasingly hard to find. They also carry Swarovski crystal but I don’t use them much because they look fake, to me. I like to use things that look natural.
They have classes at the Bead Bar. I learned pearl wrapping from a little Japanese girl and love the colors found in freshwater pearls. I made this tiny bracelet for my granddaughter for being such a good girl at the fall festival. She hasn’t seen it yet. Pearl knotting is the most durable as the wire-tipped silk thread they are strung and knotted on is strong. It is not difficult, but it is tedious and time-consuming.
Wire wrapping is really hard and extremely time consuming. This technique was taught to me by the owner of the Bead Bar. She’s really good at it and crafts some truly special items. Mine are fairly basic. This hard wire is more durable than soft wire, has to be twisted and shaped with tools, but the connections are a bit clunky. These are made with polished woods. I love the long and dangling earrings. Woods are great for fall wardrobes.
What I finished up today was a turquoise and sterling silver necklace. This is the mess I had when I forgot to fasten the clasps on before I crimped the ends. I had to restring it. (Old age memory.)
Here is the final product. This is the easiest form of beading. Select your strings of beads, get a bit creative and string them up on the soft wire. This is the least durable as the wire tends to break at the crimp over time. It’s fairly easy to restring them, so not a problem if you can collect your beads. Kind of tough if a necklace breaks in the car.
I don’t make a very good neck model, but this is how it hangs. I love turquoise with a coral-colored shirt. If you are looking for a hobby that will give you hours of joy and provides rather instant gratification (unlike writing), this is a fun one to have. I think I have an original piece of jewelry for every outfit I own now. This one would have looked just as nice with three instead of five large pieces of turquoise. I get carried away.
What do you do to take your mind off of work and relax?
Do you have a hobby?
Do you enjoy artistic endeavors?
Filed under: Hobbies Tagged: Beading, freshwater pearls, gems, hobbies, jewelry, natural, pearl knotting, polished woods, stones, stringing, turquoise, wire wrapping
Time to Choose Categories for Read Tuesday
Ideas folks? Read Tuesday is up next!
Originally posted on ReadTuesday:
READ TUESDAY CATEGORIES
It’s hard to believe that Read Tuesday (a Black Friday type of event just for book lovers) is only two months away. Read Tuesday 2014 falls on December 9.
Before we open submissions (listing your book is free and easy), we need to decide on the best way to help readers find the books.
Now we run into some of challenges of sorting through a long list of books:
Customers don’t want to click on such a narrow subcategory that there are hardly any books on the page.
Customers don’t want such a broad category that the list seems endless.
Many authors feel that their book spans multiple categories, but if their books get into multiple categories, the books at the bottom get buried even further down.
How do you organize the books on any given list in order to best help readers?
There are many more…
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Filed under: Uncategorized
October 3, 2014
Only 24 Hours Left for Legends of Windemere #Thunderclap! #fantasy #Kindle #dragons #magic #vampires #zombies
Just a second of your time! Help an author out! Only 20 more needed! Click on Thunderclap. No cost, no obligation.
Originally posted on Legends of Windemere:
The Lich by Jason Pedersen
24 HOURS LEFT FOR THE LEGENDS OF WINDEMERE THUNDERCLAP CAMPAIGN!
This post is the last ditch effort to get to 100 supports, which means I need 20 more volunteers by noon tomorrow. Will this be easy? No. Am I tired of promoting this undead horse? Yes. So, this is it. After this post, I sit back and leave the campaign in the hands of fate. The next time you’ll hear about it is Sunday when I discuss my experience with Thunderclap.
Now for blatant cuteness:
The Climber!
Filed under: Uncategorized
October 2, 2014
It’s Thursday; time for more Macabre Macaroni
My favorite Halloweenie story so far :)
Originally posted on Entertaining Stories:
I’ll dedicate this one to Doobster and Rachel, both of whom are not fans of pumpkin.
Jack ‘O Lanterns
She placed the project on the counter, turning it this way and that. Maybe the stump should be on the bottom this year. Something classic with triangles, or should she go with more detail?
More classic, I think. She used a felt tipped pen to make the triangular eyes and nose, then added a huge crooked grin from one side to another.
She thought about her son and smiled. A quick glance at the clock told her he’d be home from school in about ten more minutes. Four quick strokes of the knife across a honing steel and the edge was ready. She sliced open the top and scooped out the nasty parts.
The wind picked up and the sound of rustling leaves moving toward the door made her smile. She…
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Filed under: Uncategorized
