S.J. Pajonas's Blog, page 35

Lupin, Never Have I Ever, To All The Boys…, Next in Fashion, and Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy

So I've been watching a lot of TV in between meals and writing and reading…

Lupin 
Action, Crime, Drama | 231min | TV Series (2021– )


7.6











Writer: Stars: , , Summary: Inspired by the adventures of Arsène Lupin, gentleman thief Assane Diop sets out to avenge his father for an injustice inflicted by a wealthy family.





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Source: imdb.com

My husband and I watched Lupin together in the evenings and really loved it. I love a good heist, so this show fell squarely into my wheelhouse. The only problem was that it ended too soon! We finished the first season and then we were crushed when there were no more because it ended on quite the cliffhanger. I'm hoping the next season will be out soon.

Never Have I Ever 
Comedy | 1800min | TV Series (2020– )


7.9











Writer: , Stars: , , Summary: The complicated life of a modern-day first generation Indian American teenage girl, inspired by Mindy Kaling's own childhood.





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Source: imdb.com

I didn't expect to like Never Have I Ever after the first episode. The main character, Devi, is a real pain in the ass with a wild temper and it does not make her very likable. BUT I had a feeling that this was her fatal flaw and it would be worked on over the course of the show. It was. She became a lot more likable as the season progressed and I couldn't stop watching. I'm looking forward to another season of this too.

To All the Boys: P.S. I Still Love You (2020)
Comedy, Drama, Romance | 101min | 12 February 2020 (USA)


6.0











Director: Writer: , Stars: , , Summary: Lara Jean and Peter have just taken their relationship from pretend to officially official when another recipient of one of her old love letters enters the picture.





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To All the Boys: Always and Forever (2021)
Comedy, Drama, Romance | 109min | 12 February 2021 (USA)


6.3











Director: Writer: , Stars: , , Summary: Senior year of high school takes center stage as Lara Jean returns from a family trip to Korea and considers her college plans - with and without Peter.





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I watched To All The Boys… P.S. I Still Love You and To All The Boys… Always and Forever back to back over a couple of lunch days. These were just as charming and fun as the first movie. I love Lara Jean and her multicultural friends and family. This is how I see the United States, full of promise from everyone, you know? Anyway, the trip to New York was the only unbelievable thing about these movies. Not that I don't believe all of that can happen, but that you bring kids to the Big Apple and just set them loose. There must be a lawsuit in there somewhere. Lol.

Next in Fashion 
Reality-TV | 3000min | TV Series (2020)


7.3











Stars: , , Summary: 18 budding fashion designers compete for a $250,000 prize and the opportunity to launch a clothing line with Net-a-Porter.





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Source: imdb.com

As a long-time Project Runway watcher, I decided to give Next in Fashion a chance because I love a good fashion design challenge show. This was a fun one. They paired people up for the first half of the challenges and that added a little more depth to the designers. All in all, I was really happy with the winner, too. And Alexa Chung and Tan France were funny and sweet and knowledgable. I hear that Netflix won't be doing another season, so if you want to watch it and enjoy it for what it is, you can and not feel obligated to watch any more.

Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy 
Documentary, Reality-TV | 60min | TV Series (2021– )


8.7











Stars: , , Summary: Stanley Tucci travels across Italy to discover the secrets and delights of the country's regional cuisines. Viewers will go along with him as he enjoys the luxurious creamy carbonara of Rome, the delicious simplicity of Sicily's pasta alla Norma, the saffron-infused silkiness of risotto in Milan, the crispy tenderness of bistecca alla fiorentina, the perfect classic ragu alla bolognese and the world's best pizza in Naples. Tucci comes prepared with a bottomless appetite for it all, showing us how the diversity of Italian cooking offers a gateway through which you can glimpse Italy's history and culture.





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WARNING! Only watch this show if you have a big bowl of pasta AT THE READY or you will regret it like I did. In all seriousness, I love travel and food shows like Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy. I miss Anthony Bourdain a whole lot, and no one will ever replace him. But Stanley Tucci in Italy is not to be missed. He's Italian on both sides, speaks some Italian too, and really has a love for all things Italian, including the history and the food. My husband and I are convinced that we will retire to Italy someday. Nothing will make us happier. This show only has 3 episodes so far, probably because of the pandemic. But I'm hoping for a lot more as he travels all the regions and we learn about the food and history as he does. This one is a highly recommend!

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Sunday Update – May 9, 2021

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there! I hope you have a relaxing day ahead of you, with or without family around. To everyone else, it's Sunday!! I hope the weather is nice where you are.

I'm so glad it's sunny today. Yesterday, it rained all day, which is good for all the green things growing, but not so great for a person who wants to be outside.

We had another busy week around here with three softball games in the evenings on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday. I handled 2 of the 3 games and my husband handled the other one. We didn't have a lot of family dinners this week because of it.

I finished writing my Pets in Space novella! I'm polishing it up right now and I hope to get it out to a few first readers this week. Then I'm going to start Skylar's first book. Yay!

I'm also almost done with FIRST FLYGHT's audiobook. Once I have the chapters done, I need to figure out an intro, outro, and credits. Then I need to figure out how it all goes together.

Everything else is progressing as it should. I've got plenty going on in fitness, health, food, and work. No boring days here!

Everything is beautiful around here right now!

It's nice to see change in the little things.

30 week streak! And new Personal Records!

Peloton updated all their scenic rides so I went on one in Melbourne, Australia. It was pretty cool. Must have been shot during the pandemic because there was NO ONE on the streets.

Rainy softball from under an umbrella.

Cinco de Mayo meant Taco Tuesday got moved to Taco Wednesday and included a margarita. I ate six tacos and regret nothing.

And finally, cocktails on Friday were had and enjoyed.

Have a great week everyone! Stay healthy and safe.

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May Romantic Fantasy/Sci-Fi Reads – Promotion

Adding onto the promotions this month in May, you'll find over 50 books here! With lots of great romantic fantasy and sci-fi reads to choose from, you're bound to find your next favorite author.

Check out these Romantic Fantasy/Sci-Fi Reads!

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Discounted Space Opera Shenanigans Free – $1.99 – Promotion

It's May! And that means some more promotions for you to check out. This Space Opera promotion has dozens of great space opera sci-fi books, discounted free to $1.99. Plenty of books here for you to try out!

Check out these Space Opera Shenanigans!

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Sunday Update – May 2, 2021

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

Here we are in May! This year is just flying by already. If you missed my goals for May post, it went up yesterday.

It seems like every week is crazy busy around here. And it’s only going to get worse. We just got word from our school district that my kids will be going back to school, 5 days a week, 3 feet distance in school with masks! I trust my school district because they have conducted the year so far with an abundance of caution, and this change comes after the new CDC guidelines, so we’re doing it. I am a little worried reading the news stories about kids getting sick now but we just have to remain vigilant about everything as we always have. The kids are happy about the change. They’re ready to go back.

My week was filled with exercise, dog walking, sneezing, and softball. Lots of sneezing. I love spring. My allergies do not. And softball went moderately well too. They won some, they lost some.

My week was filled with writing too! I’m so close to the end of this novella! I will finish it by my deadline now (which is the end of this week). Then I will make some quick revisions and off to first readers. I'm so excited to have another series on the burner. So now, I'll have Skylar's Series (the Amagi Series), this series (the Kimura Family Series), and finishing off the last book in the Hikoboshi Series. By the end of 2021, I'll just have two series I can work on. That will be nice!

I am really busy as I usually am at the beginning of every month. There are social media campaigns to schedule and updates to do and backups to perform. But I think by tomorrow, I’ll be back in the swing of things.

I bought decaf green tea and I'm drinking more of it during my fasting times. I hope to give up caffeine entirely by the end of summer. (I'm also planning on giving up splenda/sucralose by then too.)

I had lunch outside this week! It was so nice but, of course, I suffered with sneezing from this.

These little guys are at Lulu's daycare and I got to see them in person this week. They are so tiny! And so cute. (No, they are not mine!)

I talked a little about RESISTANCE on Instagram this week and how it affects us.

Dinner in the car while waiting for softball to start.

Peloton added Ben Alldis to the Power Zone team this week! I did his debut ride on Friday morning and it was a lot of fun.

I've been thinking about getting a Tesla. I really love the idea of driving home and just plugging my car in. No more gas stations! The guy around the block has one and I saw it had a flat and the Tesla roadside assistance was there to fix it. When I went and test-drove a Model 3, this was one of the selling points. Tesla Roadside Assistance is some of the best in the business and you call them for ANY problems. They come out and take care of it. It was funny to see it happening in person. (I was out walking Lulu.)

Finally, CHEERS! We made it through the week! My husband and I started watching Stanley Tucci's Searching for Italy and it made us HUNGRY FOR PASTA LIKE WHOA. So we had a pasta dinner on Friday with red wine. Yum!

Have a great week everyone! Stay safe and healthy.

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May 2021 Goals

April has come and gone in the blink of an eye. Time to move on to May!

What happened with April's Goals

Publish THE RISE OF SHIROI NAMI. Done! So glad to have this book out there and to see this series going strong now. Woo!

Promote CRASH LAND ON KURAI as free. Done! All of the April ads I booked have run and now I'm seeing sell through to the rest of the series.

Write my anthology novella. This is really coming along. Once I had the story figured out, it started to pick up pace. I didn't finish it but I will soon.

Start Skylar's novel, the beginning of the Amagi Series. Didn't happen but will soon.

Build my anthology website. Didn't happen but we are delaying the anthology by a month anyway, so it's fine.

Continue on with SFR Station. Kept up with everything here.

Complete Pelofondo 50 miles. Done! I rode a little over 50 miles for the challenge! I was super beat by the end and I needed a whole week after to feel normal again. But I did it!

Start the Spring Power Zone Pack Challenge. The challenge is under way and we're having a great time!

Continue with fasting. I tried a two-day fast this month and I freaked out about not eating for more than a full day. I don't think that's for me. So I'm going to continue with my Intermittent Fasting and Time-Restricted Eating Windows, which are more my speed.

Finish my Plumpy Shawl. Done! And I love it!

Audiobooks, reading, and knitting. Reading and knitting have been good this month. I'm taking a short break from audiobooks to catch up on podcasts instead.

May Goals

Finish my Pets in Space novella. I should be done with this within a week! Yay! And then I'll send it off to a few first readers to see what they think.

Start Skylar's novel, the beginning of the Amagi Series. Okay, this is going to happen this month. I'd like to get at least the first third to half written before the end of the month.

Finish the audiobook for FIRST FLYGHT! Surprise! This wasn't on the goals for April and kind of came out of nowhere, but I have 6 chapters done so far and I will definitely be finishing it in May. I am doing an AI-generated audiobook using Amazon's Polly (from their AWS suite of tools) to make these audiobooks, and I will be selling them direct. They are a low cost solution to human narration, and I will be passing those savings onto readers and pricing them accordingly. So far, so good. The Amazon voice I have chosen is pretty easy to listen to! I'll post more about this and post samples too in the coming weeks.

Build my anthology website. I think I'll be able to do this this month.

Continue on with SFR Station. The usual needs doing here.

Keep up with the Spring Power Zone Pack Challenge. Just keep riding, Steph.

Continue with fasting. This month I will concentrate on clean fasting and doing One Meal A Day (OMAD) on Tuesdays and Thursdays.

Audiobooks, reading, and knitting. I need to continue my commitment to read every single day this year. Audiobooks for walks and knitting every weekend. I have a new knitting project and it's easy and mindless. YAY!

That's it! Have a great month everyone!

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What Have You Secretly Always Wanted To Be?

Growing up, I always wanted to be an astronaut. (I know, big surprise there, right?) It was an obsession of mine for years so much so that my parents scrimped and saved to send me to Space Camp between 5th and 6th grades. But dreams of being an astronaut died rather early for me. First of all, my sight was not the best and at the time, you needed 20/20 vision to fly. Then I also realized I would have to join the military, which was not for me. Dreamed were crushed, people.

My dreams soon morphed into writing and film. I loved science fiction and action movies and I hoped to go to college for film. But film college is expensive and I couldn’t afford it, so I learned to build websites instead. Random I know. But it turned out perfectly for me. I ended up in NYC, young and in the height of the dot com boom. I was able to do that until it was time to pick up writing again.

But secretly, I have had 3 different desires to be something else throughout my life.

An Architect

Funny, right? Where does this come from? I grew up in Michigan, and for some reason, mid-century modern architecture is really popular there. Probably because of Cranbrook. I always loved those buildings, the straight lines, the melding of the inside and outside. I also love watching the process of designing and building homes. I subscribe to This Old House and I have a good knowledge of what it takes to handle plumbing and framing and all that. Do I use this knowledge in any way? Lol. No. Though it did come in handy when we renovated the kitchen and bathroom. Maybe in another life I can be an architect. In the Nogiku Series, Sanaa starts out as a colony dwelling designer. That was my hat tip to architecture.

A farmer or botanist

I love plants and greenery and growing things. Guess what? I have a black thumb. Everything I try to grow dies. My husband is the one that keeps our plants alive. Sigh. I find the future of farming and farming methods extremely fascinating. There’s so much innovation happening here! I went to a college that’s known for agriculture and I wonder how different my life would be now if I had decided to take those classes instead. This is why Mei in the Miso Cozy Mysteries comes from a farming family and Vivian from the Flyght Series also specializes in farming.

An athlete

This is something I’m finally working to achieve in my 40s! But growing up, I was enamored of all the athletes out there. People who ran and swam and biked… they were all amazing in my book. I watched the Summer Olympics every time in awe, wondering about what it took to be that athletic. My favorites are varied. I love watching diving, gymnastics, the marathon, biking… well, let’s face it, I’ll watch just about anything if it’s Olympics related. Now, as a Peloton rider, I finally feel like an athlete! And it’s hard hard work, people. I can only imagine what these Olympic athletes have to do to compete. This is why I made Isa a runner in Summer Haikus and her best friend is an Olympic marathoner. I truly admire long-distance, endurance athletes and I had to include them in my books.

So now that you know these secret things I’ve always wanted to be, I want to know about yours! Be sure to let me know in the comments.

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Sunday Update – April 25, 2021

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

This was a killer week, people. I wasn’t sure I was going to make it to the weekend. We all managed to survive but it was crazy.

Last Sunday, we decided to check out a local open house for a hike we always admired. It was only two blocks over, in the same general neighborhood. We loved it and thought HEY we should bid on this place. So we called our agent and she got on it right away.

Monday, I had to take the kids after school for their first Covid-times well-checkup. It was stressful with lots of tears over shots and bloodwork (finger prick). Then my youngest’s urine came back with proteins in it. So I was told to collect a fresh one in the morning and drive it over right away within an hour. Great. Then that evening, the youngest had softball practice then a game. The game was soooo cold and wet and long. It was absolutely miserable for everyone.

Tuesday, I got the pee sample over to the doctor, came home, and walked the dog. Then I showered and we met our agent at the house for another walk through. Yep. We wanted to bid on it. Great! She then came over to see our disaster of a house (just in case she needed to put it on the market) and we made plans to bid. Then I went and got a follow up second ultrasound to the first mammogram and ultrasound I got the week before. Everything is fine! Thankfully. Then I came home and we moved out our old couch and prepared for the delivery of the new one. In the evening, we had another softball game to go to.

Wednesday, we got the house cleaned and both my husband and I got our second Moderna Covid vaccinations. We had a fairly chill day otherwise. Not too bad. It got really cold midweek though and that was just annoying for all of us. We’re done with winter!

Thursday, I was waiting for those side effects to kick in and nothing happened! My husband was not so lucky though. He was so tired. Then he developed a massive headache and nausea. He went to bed at 6:30pm and slept all the way to the next morning!

We got the bid in on the house by 3pm and by 8pm we knew we didn’t get it. We bid way over asking price but the house went for even more than that. We’re second on the list. I suppose the first bid could fall through but we won’t count on it.

It was still brick cold on Thursday and there was supposed to be another away softball game. Thankfully it was canceled! Yay! A silver lining.

We made it to Friday alive. Telling the kids we lost the house wasn’t fun. One cried. The other was accepting. But then we had a good day with better weather. Plus, I published THE RISE OF SHIROI NAMI! Which I had completely forgotten about several times during the week. I'm just glad I remembered in time to set everything up online. In the evening, I got to see my friends on Zoom after a few glasses of much-needed wine. Lol.

Through it all, I wrote! My story is really coming together now and I love it. I downloaded a pomodoro app for my computer and I’m writing in 15 min sprints. It seems to be just enough time to get my words down. If I do 4-6 of them a day, I get plenty written. Yay! I can’t wait to write this week.

Finished Pelofondo last weekend! Hoo boy, was that brutal but fun. I'm glad I did it, and I'll probably do it again!

New couch is here! We got this from Joybird and we love it. So does Lulu, obviously…

But the new couch did throw her for a loop the first day. She was all, “Do you sit under it???”

Rainbows, knitting, and writing at softball games.

I love spring!

A moment for popcorn and good weather on the deck with Lulu.

I've hit the 6000 minutes of workout time in 2021 on Peloton milestone!

And second shot done! Thankfully, my only side effects were some fatigue (no more, really, than I usually feel), a racing heart on a few occasions, and a sore arm.

Have a great week everyone! Stay safe and healthy!

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THE RISE OF SHIROI NAMI Is Now Available! Get the Fourth Book in the Hikoboshi Series Today!

You heard, right! The fourth book in the Hikoboshi Series is now available. Don't miss the continuing adventures of Yumi and Rin on Kurai and Hikari. This is the penultimate book of the series. I fully intend to write the last book of the series later this year, probably for NaNoWriMo in November. So now is a good time to pick up the first book, CRASH LAND ON KURAI, or if you've already read the series up to now, pick up THE RISE OF SHIROI NAMI today!

Ruthless corporate tyranny. A traitor out to destroy her. Can she defeat a mighty foe to save a desperate universe?

Yumi Minamoto will never stop fighting for freedom. Far from her homeworld, the crusader’s hope for victory solidifies when she discovers a way to reprogram the oppressive android army. But Yumi and Rin’s plan to infiltrate the enemy’s facility goes up in smoke when their hidden base is suddenly attacked.

Suffering serious injuries, Yumi’s only option to carry out the dangerous mission could be an unpredictable medical procedure. But she risks losing everything when an old adversary and his rabid genetically engineered creatures put everyone’s lives at stake.

Can Yumi stand her ground without sacrificing all she loves?

The Rise of Shiroi Nami is the gripping fourth book in The Hikoboshi Series space opera romance series. If you like heroic characters, high-tech conflict, and unexpected twists and turns, then you’ll thrill to S. J. Pajonas’ intense science fiction saga.

Purchase The Rise of Shiroi Nami

Thank you again, everyone, for your support and patience. I know it's been a while since I've released a book, but there are a lot of them coming down the pipe in the next year. I have so many covers to show off and I'm excited about everything I plan to write. I just need 2021 to cooperate and we should be all good. Take care and stay safe!

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Sunday Update – April 18, 2021

The Sunday Post is a weekly meme hosted by Kimba @ Caffeinated Book Reviewer. It’s a chance to share news. A post to recap the past week, showcase books and things we have received and share news about what is coming up for the week on our blog.

It was a week of flowers blooming and allergies flaring around here. It was also a week of rain. I did manage to get out with Lulu for our regular walks, but they weren't always pleasant with so much rain and humidity. On Monday, Lulu had a dodgy belly so I kept her home from daycare, but otherwise, it was a fairly normal week.

We got a new coffee table! It's one I've always wanted. The Herman Miller Noguchi coffee table. Yes, they're expensive, so don't look them up if you don't want a shock. Lol. We bought the real thing, not a knock-off. Our new couch comes this week too! I'm excited for it all. It's nice to have the grown-up furniture finally.

I've been participating in Pelofondo this weekend! Pelofondo is a long-distance indoor biking event. You choose a mileage, 35 miles or greater, to ride for the weekend (both Sat and Sun) and then get to it. (A Gran Fondo is an Italian long-distance race, hence why this is called Pelofondo.) I chose to ride 50 miles which I thought would be really hard for me. After all, I broke my leg 2 years ago! It turned out that I rode 40 miles yesterday and today I only need 10 more to reach my goal. Yay! I'll finish them up later this morning.

And as for writing, it's coming along slowly. I finally know what I'm writing about and now it's just all about getting the words down every day. I didn't write yesterday because I was too tired after the 40 miles on the bike. Today, I will write this afternoon.

Looking pretty out there!

My husband is still baking bread. This is a rye sourdough loaf! So good.

The Noguchi coffee table. I love it!

I'm not hiding… I've been on Instagram now for 10 years! It was my 10 year anniversary this past week. I love spending time on Instagram.

I posted to Instagram about my process for writing, and I got a lot of interesting responses.

Rides 1 and 2, and then after ride 2 on Saturday for Pelofondo. 40 miles done in one day! Today I finish up the last 10 miles.

Relaxing with Lulu on the couch afterwards.

And finally, Lulu loves her fuzzy blanket we got her. It's her favorite napping spot.

Have a great week everyone! Stay safe and healthy.

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