Castle in the Clouds

The Big Read reckons that the average adult has only read 6 of the top 100 books they’ve printed. Well let’s see. 1) Look at the list and indicate those you have read (I used orange text). 2) Italicize those you intend to read. 1 Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen 2 The Lord of the Rings - JRR Tolkien 3 Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte 4 Harry Potter series - JK Rowling 5 To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee 6 The Bible (parts of it) 7 Wuthering Heights 8 Nineteen Eighty Four - George Orwell 9 His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman 10 Great Expectations - Charles Dickens 11 Little Women - Louisa M Alcott 12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles - Thomas Hardy 13 Catch 22 - Joseph Heller 14 Complete Works of Shakespeare 15 Rebecca - Daphne Du Maurier 16 The Hobbit - JRR Tolkien 17 Birdsong - Sebastian Faulks 18 Catcher in the Rye - JD Salinger 19 The Time Traveller’s Wife - Audrey Niffenegger 20 Middlemarch - George Eliot 21 Gone With The Wind - Margaret Mitchell 22 The Great Gatsby - F Scott Fitzgerald 23 B...

Believe it or not, I have been writing. I had a sort of breakthrough moment yesterday, which was desperately needed. The end is in sight, people! I might change a few things during the revision process, but I think for the most part what I got worked. I'm going to finish this novel. Let me say that one more time with a bit more feeling. I'm going to finish this novel! If I could make those words dance, sparkle, or sing, I would. It's no longer a question in my mind or a vague hope. I know I'm going to finish it. I am going to finish it, polish it, give it to some trusted beta readers, and then... Do I self-publish or do I engage in the agent/publisher hunt? Almost from the beginning I've planned on using Lulu's services. Remember this story is a belated Christmas present for my sister-in-law (thank goodness it wasn't the only gift I gave her that year!). I started it with the intention of self-publishing it so the gift-giving wouldn't be ins...

My nephew was supposed to have surgery this morning. Imagine my surprise when the hubby and I passed my sister on our way to work and she was driving not towards the hospital but towards home! Of course, being the nosey person I am, I had to know what was going on. A quick cell phone call and I discovered today's surgery had been cancelled and she'd be heading back to work. During that brief conversation, my sister told me how her intuition had been giving her fits for the last 24-hours and then this. We both agreed the surgery wasn't meant to happen today and, although the cancellation poses some new challenges and a whole new set of headaches, it's really for the best. Now fast foward a few hours ahead. I'm reading Lisa Bearnson's blog and I come across the story of the little girl they had been vacationing with who had gone missing in the middle of the night. Events had transpired in such a way that the lousy start to their vacation (being unable to get on t...

It would take too long to walk you day-by-day through our Disney World vacation, so I'm going to give you the highlights. We stayed in a condo for the week. The complex was located about 15 minutes away from most of the Disney parks; Downtown Disney with all its stores and shops was closer by half. The condo had several pools, a putt-putt golf coarse, a tennis court, an activities center, and probably a lot of other stuff we never noticed. We ended up eating at one of the restaurants on the premises halfway through the week, but other than raiding the registration area on a Friday night for free slushies and cotton candy, we spent very little time at the condo. Of course, that's not counting the nights we spent in the pools. After a day of intense heat and near dehydration (well, we could have dehydrated!), the pools were a big hit and something the kids especially looked forward to every night. The parks. How can I talk about a week of Disney without mentioning the parks? I ...

Cash (Cassius) Originally uploaded by Krheiser I'm skipping ahead a few days in the ducumenting of our family vacation because I just can't wait to show you the latest addition to our little family. He weighs about 4lbs right now and we're thinking he'll top out around 8-9. His name is Cassius (call him Cash, we do!). He's not potty trained. He's a bit of a biter when he's in play-mode. He wakes me up about 5AM every morning. He's a lover most of the time. Seriously. So many kisses... We don't know his full name yet. His Momma's name was Braveheart Did-It-Bite-Ya. His Daddy's name is Max (no idea if it's just plain ole Max, Maximus, Maximillion...) I thought we should give his parents some kind of recognition, but I'm not sure. Is that a requirement when naming a registered dog?

I thought it might be nice if I posted something other than just pictures of our vacation. You know, like words! Maybe even full sentences. Paragraphs with nice transitional phrases. (Don't get your hopes up!) I should probably start by mentioning that the kidlets were surprised. Perhaps a bit less bouncy than I had anticipated, but the surprise was definitely there. We pulled into the airport around 10AM Sunday morning. As we were merging with traffic and trying to figure out how to get to that off-site parking lot across the expressway, I pulled out my camera. Then, when the camera had been turned on and the settings checked, the hubby and I told them we were getting on an airplane and going to Florida. The oldest looked like a deer in the headlights. "We're going on an airplane?" he asked, not at all eager and more than a little intimidated. Yes, maybe even a touch of instant anxiety shadowed his little hazel eyes. The youngest did a little hop in his seat ...

I'm making progress - I need to remember to update my progress bar - and feeling decent about what I'm getting. I think a lot of my problem revolved around the fact that the weeks long hiatus from the book had thrown me out of the story. Little details escaped and eluded me, setting me adrift in a sea of uncertainty and confusion. Luckily, those important and pesky little details that make a story work are coming back to me. The characters are breathing once more, urging me to hurry the hell up and just finish it already! A couple of weeks ago I would have squirmed uneasily in my chair, but over the last few days I've discovered I'm eager to do just that. So excuse me if I don't stick around here and chat. And don't worry if I disappear for a few days!

We have yet another baby in the family. My cousin has just welcomed her third daughter, Lola, into the world. Word has it mommy and baby are dong fine.

I think I've mentioned before that I've set my oldest boy up with his very own blog. It's private and requires an invitation, so all worries about pedophile stalkers can be laid to rest. Worries about mom losing her mind should be taken out of the closet and given new life. That child! I know writing is hard for him. I know the ideas in his head never quite make it onto the paper how he wants it to. I get it. What I don't get is his total lack of concern over the matter. Last night's entry is a key example. I'm going to copy and paste from his blog for your reading...pleasure? Keep in mind, I've not made any changes to the text. This is exactly what appears on his blog. funny jouks ock nock whose there hands hands who hand off my cat! nock nock whos there there run run who run the dog is gaging onn us nock nock whos there bit bit who your dog bit me As you can see, the spelling is atrocious. Punctuation? Who needs it? I tried reading it aloud to him last nig...

This may come as a surprise, but I don't consider myself much of a shopper. Don't get me wrong, I could be! I could easily spend my weekends hopping from store to store, searching for that perfect pair of jeans or a cute little shirt to go with those shorts I have at home. I could also spend hours browsing the local B&N in search of the next best read. Oh, yes, I could easily become a hardcore shopper if the funds were available. But I don't frequent the mall because there's always something more pressing to spend my paychecks on and I'm not very good at window shopping. If I'm browsing, I'm buying. So I don't go. At least, not often. However, as we all know, there are times when shopping is necessary. Family vacations happen to be one of them. My feeling on the matter is that everyone needs to look good in the hundreds of photos I will undoubtedly take. Last year's wardrobe just won't do, not even if it still fits! Besides, I doubt...