I See What You Meme

If the last few years have taught us anything, it is that life is complicated and challenging in many ways. Most days, I'm exhausted. Are you exhausted?  During the early part of 2022, though, I had the chance to read three books that really helped me frame my frustration, angst, and anxiety about the world.  All of these books are recently published, based on solid research, and approach their subjects in a way that makes them understandable and relatable to everyone. If you read even one of these books, I guarantee that you will learn things, gain perspective about the world, and discover insights about yourself and your humanity. Each book also touches on the role the COVID-19 pandemic has had on our lives and on our society so they are certainly timely.  I will share my individual reviews for each book that I published on my Goodreads profile. If you have read any of these books recently, would love to hear your thoughts as well!  Atlas of the Heart by Brene Bro...

As the weather turns slowly from summer to fall, I am increasingly aware of other changes making their way into my life.  I don't fear change. In fact, I know that change is a "normal" part of the life process. If we push too hard against inevitable change, we meet resistance and frustration.  Sometimes, though, changes come on so slowly that we don't even notice the gradual shift until the "new" has been fully replaced by "the old". Some gradual changes... I'm writing less on a formal basis these days. There was no conscious decision about this. I have just become more involved in other things.  I still think about writing quite a bit and I often write "for myself" (journaling, etc.) but I am blogging on a less frequent basis and my writing for other publications has slowed down. It's ok because I know that everything cycles back around eventually. I'm reading more.  I had gone for a long time without reading f...

It is 12:30 AM and I am still so wired I can't sleep. The book release party was a-MAZE-ing.  Where do I begin? Me...in book signing mode! First of all, Roger and my best friend Jamie conspired to surprise me and they succeeded!  Jamie is my oldest and one of my dearest friends .  She also happens to be the photographer who took the cover photo for Four Seasons for Charlotte .  When I told her about the date for the book release party, I realized that she probably wouldn't be able to attend.  She does, after all, live in Florida. For the last few weeks, she has been sending me messages of congratulations, telling me how sorry she was that she couldn't make it.  I promised to send her one of the first copies.  What I didn't know was that she was working with Roger to visit this weekend.  She showed up at the book signing and totally made my day.  Getting to spend the last few hours just chatting with an old friend: Priceless.  I ...

As promised, I am bringing you a sneak peek excerpt from my forthcoming book, Four Seasons for Charlotte . The book will be available May 15th. You can currently pre-order at Amazon and Barnes and Noble . You can also add the book to your Goodreads queue ! Stay tuned for book release party info! This is an excerpt from Chapter 10, titled "Bringing Up Baby". I'm including the very beginning and very end of the chapter so you can get some context. Believe it or not, I reach a startling epiphany around....poop.  Yes, ladies and gentlemen.  You read that correctly.  Poop.  Here we go... Before Charlotte was born, well-meaning parents and friends kept repeating the same tired mantra, “You know, after your baby is born, your life is never going to be the same.” Roger and I both thought this was one of the most ridiculous things anyone could say to us. Wasn’t this a given? Who, in their right mind, had any idea that after a baby entered your life it would continue t...

This was quite a weekend! First, Roger and I competed in our first "official" Comedy Sportz tournament. If you follow our CJSTUF blog, you may remember that back in November, we joined forces with Comedy Sportz Richmond and Richmond Mom for a CJSTUF fundraiser .  We had so much fun that we ended up auditioning for the troop in January and we got in! I will have to share more about the program and what we do in another post, but let's just say we get to laugh a lot, and that's a good thing! Our Story Corps interview area On Saturday morning, Roger and I met at Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden for a very special event. We were invited to participate in a Story Corps interview promoting the garden. About a month ago, the folks at Lewis Ginter made a call for personal stories that could be used for a special Story Corps promotion. They wanted to know how the garden has made an impact on families in the community.  Roger and I submitted a story about our experiences...

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green My rating: 5 of 5 stars I tread lightly when venturing into "terminal disease" territory when it comes to books, movies , or TV shows. I approach the work (regardless of the medium) with more than a bit of caution. I don't want something that will be schmaltzy or emotionally manipulative. I don't want anything that shies away from the truth. More importantly, I'm worried that the story will resonate so clearly, it will upset me emotionally . With all of this in mind, I dug in to The Fault in our Stars with some degree of cautious optimism. I had heard Scott Simon's interview with John Green on Weekend Edition one Saturday and bought the book the following week. Green quotes the book in his interview, stating, "There is only one thing in this world [worse] than biting it from cancer when you're sixteen, and that's having a kid who bites it from cancer." With that quote, I understood fairly well that...

So this is my 100th blog post.  Can you believe that? I've been writing this blog for almost 15 months. Thank you for continuing to show up for my ramblings and musings.  I think that it is incredibly fitting that I hit the century mark as I am poised to make an exciting announcement.  ( Drum roll please...) I have a release date for my book! Four Seasons for Charlotte  will be available in wide release on May 15th of this year. The book is already available for pre-order on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. I searched for it today and found it! How exciting is that?   Electronic versions of the book will also be available.   We will also sell copies through the CJSTUF website.  I am also excited to let you know that 50% of all of my royalties from sales of the book will go directly to CJSTUF.  We will have details about a release party and some local signings coming soon. As some of you noticed via my announcement on Twitter and Facebook...

So here we are on the penultimate day of the year. I survived the Christmas holiday . I even went to church. More on that in a future post (possibly). The last week or so has been a wonderful combination of relaxing and productive. I admit that I haven't blogged much but I've been busy with other projects at home.   In thinking about the close of the year, I considered a collection of lists. I've been enjoying all the other Top 10 Lists populating the Internet these days but when I considered my own, I felt horribly inadequate. I've only seen from 1/3 to 1/2 of the movies that people are talking about on their 10 best list. I don't think I even saw 10 movies in the theater this year. I wouldn't be a good authority on movies. I've read a lot of books this year but I've already reviewed those books on my blog . You can always find me on Goodreads to get an idea of what I liked or didn't like.  Music. Well, I listen to a lot of music and my tast...

While on our vacation , I spent a lot of time reading.  Here are my reviews: 11/22/63 by Stephen King My rating: 4 of 5 stars I'm so happy Stephen King isn't really "retired". 11/22/63 was an epic novel (690 pages!) that did not disappoint. King is the master at spinning a good yarn. In his latest book, he creates a time travel scenario just this side of plausible with characters who are believable, likeable, and still genuinely human (i.e. flawed). As protagonist Jake Epping attempts to make good on a dying man's wish to use a found portal into the past to stop the JFK assassination, he embarks on a journey that is part history, part fantasy, and completely engaging. Through the lens of the early 1960s, 11/22/63 explores the possible implications of time travel, examining that age-old question: are we masters of our own (or someone else's) destiny or is life more about a predetermined fate. As narrator, Jake repeats two mantras throughout the journ...

Happy Friday! What a busy few weeks it has been.  Considering today may be the end of the world...again...I guess everyone is just trying to make the most of it.  If you missed my Instructions for the Apocalypse the first time the world was supposed to end this year, you can catch a refresher. No reason to leave the Earth unprepared.   In case the world doesn't end today, here are a few books to add to your reading list: Clara and Mr. Tiffany by Susan Vreeland My rating: 4 of 5 stars What a great read! I have always been fascinated by Louis Comfort Tiffany's artwork and I thoroughly enjoyed this novel of historical fiction. Told from the perspective of Clara Driscoll, one of the lead designers for Tiffany's windows and lamps, the story was built on the historical information left from the day (personal correspondence and other documents). I loved the author's meticulous detail in describing the methods by which the women created these amazing works of art. It...

Holy Crap, people! Where does the time go?  Ten short days ago, I was celebrating my birthday . I haven't blogged since then.  What's my excuse this time? I ' ve been super busy between my job, CJSTUF , and other assorted tasks.   My godson, Thor Thatcher I also got to make a weekend trip to Roanoke to celebrate my godson Thatcher's first birthday and baptism.  I'm a proud god-mama. Please don't make any surprise visits to my home. I think another hurricane may have hit the house.  I have wanted to write. I have needed to write.  The days have been long and time has been short. I haven't even had time to do much reading lately.   Can anyone relate? For this week's Follow Friday, I'm going to give you a few things to read.  If you're like me, you haven't got a lot of time, so here are some options: If you have a few minutes: Read this post from the Brave Girls Club . I found it through a friend on Facebook.  It spoke to ...