Inspired by Robins

Posted on May 16, 2013 at 3:37 am by Mia

This year, like previous years, the robins returned to nest on the light next to our front door. I’ve been watching and waiting and wondering. Would they stay and start a family?

I hoped they would.  The mother robin began sitting on the nest a few weeks ago, but she also spent time away.  When I tried to peek in,  I didn’t see eggs. Were they there? I couldn’t tell and I was afraid of getting too close and spooking the mom. Then a few days ago, when the mommy robin brought a worm back, I spotted three little beaks. What a miracle those little lives are. Today, I snapped some photos to share along with thirteen facts about robins.

Header courtesy of samulli

  1. Robins are members of the thrust family. Males have brick red breasts while their heads and tails and wings are dark gray to black. Females have the same color only it’s muted while young robins have white freckles on their red stomachs.
  2. Robins eat earthworms, beetles, grubs, caterpillars, grasshoppers, ants, spiders, snails, fruits and berries.
  3. Female robins chose the nest site. They’re fond of evergreens, which provide cover before deciduous trees leaf out, but windowsills and other ledges are also favorite places.
  4. Commonly, robins construct nests of twigs and weed or grass stems in two to six days. Sometimes they also add man-made items like string or cloth.
  5. Their nests are bulky and look uncomfortable from the outside, but inside, they have a soft, smooth lining of mud and fine grasses.
  6. Female robins lay three to four light blue eggs.
  7. The eggs hatch in 12 to 14 days.
  8. Once the baby birds emerge, the real parenting challenge begins. The babies need to be feed every 15 to 20 minutes from sunrise to well into the evening.
  9. Fortunately, this intense feeding lasts only about 21/2 weeks. After about 15 days, the baby birds leave the nest.
  10. The young birds are called fledglings or branchers.
  11. They’re called branchers because they can’t fly yet, so they hop about on the ground or on low branches.
  12. After a few days of practice, they get the knack of flight.
  13. I guess you might consider them teenagers. They feed themselves for the most part, but they’re still supervised and cared for by the parents for about 3 to 4 weeks. When the teens become adults, the parent robins may have another family in the same nest. Apparently some robins have two or three clutches of eggs each year.

I’m looking forward to watching my robin family grow up and perhaps I’ll have more pictures to share. How about you? Do you have interesting animals you like to observe near you? What kinds?

A weekly blog where writers share their inspiration

 

Sources

http://wdfw.wa.gov/living/robins.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Robin

 

Posted in Thursday Thirteen, Thursday's Children, Uncategorized | Tagged | 46 Comments

Hello Spring Flowers!

Posted on May 2, 2013 at 2:02 am by Mia

 

Photo taken by my talented friend, Terah

 

Today, just walking around my yard, inspires me. My first spring flowers are blooming. To me, they’re miraculous. When I tuck the dry, dormant bulbs in the ground in the fall I’m never sure if they’ll grow and survive to blossom.

Picture by Terah

So many things can go wrong. I may have planted them too deep or too shallow. Chipmunks steal some bulbs. Deer and rabbits nibble the sprouts. A lot can happen over the long winter so…when the weather finally warms and my bulbs flower, each one is a gift. Please let me share a few of them with you.

Daffodils as photographed by Terah

 

I’m not the only person who likes flowers. Here are 13 other flower enthusiasts’ thoughts.

  1. Earth  laughs in flowers. ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson
  2. Nobody  sees a flower-really-it is so small it takes time-we haven’t time-and to      see takes time, like to have a friend takes time. ~ Georgia O’Keeffe
  3. A flower cannot blossom without sunshine, and man cannot live without love. ~ Max Muller
  4. People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the      whole time to have such things about us. ~ Iris Murdoch
  5. Love is like a beautiful flower which I may not touch, but whose fragrance      makes the garden a place of delight just the same. ~ Helen Keller
  6. Love is a flower you’ve got to let grow. ~ John Lennon
  7. I must have flowers, always, and always. ~ Claude Monet
  8. Just living is not enough. One must have sunshine, freedom, and a little flower. ~ Hans Christian Anderson
  9. When I judge art, I take my painting and put it next to a God made object like a     tree or a flower. If it clashes, it is not art. ~ Paul Cezanne
  10. The violets in the mountains have broken the rocks. ~Tennessee Williams
  11. Flowers seem intended for the solace of ordinary humanity. ~ John Ruskin
  12. Remember that chicken, marriages, and flower gardens reflect the kind of care they get. ~ H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
  13. Who wants flowers when you’re dead? Nobody. ~ J. D. Salinger

Photo taken by Terah

Has spring come to your part of the world? Are flowers blooming near you? What kinds?

A weekly blog where writers share their inspiration.

 

Sources

http://www.quotegarden.com/flowers.html

http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/flowers

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/flower.html

 

Posted in gardens, Thursday Thirteen, Thursday's Children, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 38 Comments

Inspired by Kindness: A Shout Out to the Judges and Coordinators of the 2013 Great Expectations Contest as well as the Members of the North Texas Romance Writers

Posted on April 4, 2013 at 12:12 pm by Mia

 

Like a lot of romance writers, I’ve entered a contest or two. Sometimes, my writing finals and gets awarded a first, second, third or fourth place. Often, I receive good feedback, but, for me, it’s the little kindnesses that make the difference—the gentle words and the small gestures of good intentions. I opened an envelope last week to find a whole page signed by well-wishers. It brought a huge grin to my face.

This post is my way of saying, “Thanks, I appreciate you, too.”

Kindness is an awesome quality. I know I’m not alone in delighting in it. Here are what 13 great thinkers have to say on the subject of kindness.

Thursday Thirteen Polyhedron courtesy of M.C.

  1. Three things in human life are important: the first is to be kind; the second is to be kind; and the third is to be kind. ~Henry James
  2. Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle. ~Plato
  3. There is nothing so rewarding as to make people realize that they are worthwhile in this world. ~Bob Anderson
  4. If you can’t be kind, at least be vague. ~ Judith Martin
  5. No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted. ~ Aesop
  6. All I’m saying is, kindness don’t have no boundaries. ~Kathryn Stockett, The Help 
  7. Moments of kindness and reconciliation are worth having, even if the parting has to come sooner or later. ~Alice Munro
  8. Always try to be a little kinder than is necessary. ~J.M. Barrie
  9. But remember, boy, that a kind act can sometimes be as powerful as a sword. ~ Rick Riordan, The Battle of the Labyrinth 
  10. Kindness is a language which the deaf can hear and the blind can see. ~ Mark Twain
  11. Kind words can be short and easy to speak, but their echoes are truly endless. ~ Mother Teresa
  12. The simplest acts of kindness are by far more powerful then a thousand heads bowing in prayer. ~ Mahatma Gandhi
  13. The shortest distance between two people is a smile. ~ Victor Borge

 

It’s fun to brag about kindness. Do you an experience you’d like to share? Or a quote that exemplifies charity or compassion? I’m all ears. And, as always, thanks for stopping by.

A weekly blog hop where writers share their inspirations. Please join us!

 Sources

http://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/kindness

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/kindness.html

http://ntrwagreatexpectations.blogspot.com/

Posted in Thursday Thirteen, Thursday's Children, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 36 Comments

Inspiration: Coloring Easter Eggs with Friends

Posted on March 28, 2013 at 3:51 pm by Mia

 

Tired of the same old, same old…Easter Eggs? My friend Kathy showed a new and easy technique to enliven the traditional boiled-and-dyed egg color.

 

  1. Gather supplies. You’ll need: eggs, scissors, rubber bands (lots of rubber bands), vinegar, a big pot with a lid, a seam ripper, if you have one, and old silk ties. My friend bought hers from rummage sales. I picked up a few at Goodwill.
  2. Take the ties apart. If you don’t have a seam ripper, you can use your scissors to remove the threads. Take the batting, the inner part of the tie out, and set it aside, so you’ll have a pile of brightly printed silk and a pile of white heavier fabric. To start pick a piece of silk.
  3. Put a raw egg on the pretty or showy side of the silk and estimate how much of the fabric you’ll need to cover the egg.
  4. Cut that much from the tie.
  5. Wrap the fabric around the egg. Again, make sure the pretty side of the silk is facing the egg. Use lots of rubber bands to secure the silk to the egg. I believe more rubber bands equal more color and design on the egg. (On some of the eggs, where the silk seemed particularly slippery, we also banded the tie’s inner batting around silk as a second layer.)
  6. Put the egg-tie bundles in a large pot of cold water.
  7. Add vinegar. I think Kathy poured about a cup into water.
  8. Heat the eggs and water until the water boils. Then turn the heat to simmer and cover the pot. Wait about 10 to 15 minutes.
  9. Take the pot from the stove. Run cold water into the pot to cool the egg bundles to the point where you can touch them.
  10. Unwrap the eggs.
  11. Admire your handiwork. Don’t they look different? I’m sure these eggs will spark conversation.
  12. You can call your eggs done or if you’re feeling artistic, you can mix a cup of hot water, with a few tablespoons of vinegar and food coloring and, following the traditional method—dunk or dip your egg in the cup with a spoon. Or you can use a paint brush to add a splash of additional color to your creation.
  13. If some of your eggs break, feel free to peel and sample as we did.

 

Well, I hope you enjoyed learning this new method for creating Easter eggs as much as I did. I’d like to thank my friends Kathy and Zac for teaching me and I’d like to thank you for visiting.

 

As always, I wish you much happiness and many blessings.

And…a quick shout out to my Thursday’s Children blog buddies.

 

 

Posted in Thursday Thirteen, Thursday's Children, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , | 51 Comments

Inspiration–A Newly Published Friend

Posted on March 14, 2013 at 1:00 am by Mia

 

This week for Thursdays Children, a weekly blog hop, where writers discuss their muses and motivations, I have a guest who I believe will inspire you–my new friend, Barbara or as she’s known professionally B.L. Bates.

She grew up reading speculative fiction. Then she received a BS in electrical engineering and worked for several years in the computer industry. When a head injury left her totally blind, she turned to writing speculative fiction to stay sane. With her youngest child in college, she lives with her husband in Massachusetts and plots ways to spend more time with her grandchildren.

She’s had short stories published online, and some like “GreenWorld” published in print.

I asked Barbara to share some of her hard-won knowledge along with a few writing tips. She agreed, so…without any further ado, here are Barbara’s thoughts.

Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Barbara and here are three pertinent facts about me. I’m a mother, step-mother, and grandmother. I have a degree in electrical engineering. And, I’m totally blind. And the most important fact (right now) is my first novel, AsterIce, has recently been published by Eternal Press. It’s available on Amazon for Kindle and in print.

Below are thirteen things I learned from writing my novel. Here’s what I learned, in no particular order.

1. You have to find the “I’m finished” point. Or else the novel will never be (finished, that is).

2. You don’t have to change every little thing that’s commented on. You should consider them all, though, and rewrite or delete those you think need to be.

3. You do have to make those changes deemed intrinsic and necessary to the publishing house.

4. Sometimes you just have to walk away and think.

5. When that dish of ice cream, that brownie, or those cookies call, you are required to eat them. Right then. Just to stay sane.

6. Your family will live if they eat pizza once a week. Takeout food works too.

7. The house will NOT fall down if the chores are neglected — for a while anyway. (This one works for me, as I can’t see the mess. What mess?)

8. Most people out there are willing to help, providing you ask nice. The converse — there are some people who need a good kick in the butt before they even notice you. It’s up to you if you want to deal with this second group. Sometimes, though, you don’t have a choice.

9. Sometimes you have to step outside your comfort zone and learn new things, including new software programs. It only hurts for a while.

10. Always have some way of taking notes with you. Odds are, that “ah-hah” moment will occur when you’re standing in line at the register counting out change. Or just after you lather up your hair in the shower.

11. You should never sit there without typing something. Consider reading, exercising, or cooking, to get inspiration. When inspiration does hit, have the computer warmed up and waiting.

12. Save those large sections that don’t make it through the first (or second) draft. Maybe they can be used later in a different form, in a different story, or for inspiration for something else.

13. Enjoy writing, or just don’t write!

Yes! Isn’t that inspiring? Please check out Barbara’s book, AsterIce.

Here’s an excerpt:

“It’s worse than that.” Tanya rubbed her temples. The mother of all headaches waited in the wings, ready to pounce.

“How so?” Colonel Frade said.

“A computer simulation indicates AsterIce has spread to every known water source on the planet through drainage, evaporation and condensation. Using some process we don’t yet understand, the additions to AsterIce multiply when added to normal water, even sea water.”

“All of Earth’s waters are now…polluted by the virus?” Richard stared at Tanya.

She met his eyes, closed hers, and nodded.

“What percentage of the population will be affected by it?”Virginiaasked.

Tina, seeing her mother’s agitation, brought her a glass of water.

“One hundred percent.” Tanya gulped the water Tina handed her.

“All this scientific jargon has me muddled. In English, please. What does this all mean?” Colonel Frade asked.

“In addition to the vitamins and minerals in AsterIce, there is what we originally thought to be inert organic matter. It turns out we were wrong.”

“How so?”Wattsasked.

“The inert matter is actually a shell containing an alien virus.

“Tests show the AsterIce virus is originally passed to its subjects through the digestive system. The virus is then released in the stomach, where the outer shell is removed by our digestive acids. The virus spreads into every cell in the human body. This leads to a build-up in the lungs.”

“So, now the virus can become airborne.” Richard’s visage looked grim.

“Not quite. By the time symptoms begin to occur, the lungs are filled to capacity with the virus. The question is not when will it begin, but how long has it been going on? Also, how many of us are infected?”

AsterIce is available at:
EBook ISBN: 9781615728503
Print ISBN: 9781615728510

Eternal Press: http://www.eternalpress.biz/book.php?isbn=9781615728503

Amazon.com: http://amzn.com/B00BA1O2ES

 

Posted in Thursday Thirteen, Thursday's Children | Tagged , , , | 54 Comments

Snow On the Mind

Posted on February 28, 2013 at 3:36 am by Mia

A wet, heavy snowfall has me shoving. Once, twice, three times today alone, I’ve helped dig out my driveway. My muscles groan and I briefly consider making a few snow angels on the remaining area needing to be cleared and calling the job finished.

Don’t get me wrong I love snow, but I like it best when the white stuff falls gently like the glitter dust in a snow globe. I like to catch individual crystals on my glove and study the tiny artwork. When I gaze the little, intricate wonders, I’m inspired to learn more and to share what I’ve discovered.

  1. Every winter, one septillion or 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000 snow crystals fall.
  2. Why so many? Probably because it takes almost a million crystals to make a snowflake.
  3. Not only that, there are about 180 billion molecules of water in an average snowflake.
  4. Snow, like water, actually is clear and colorless, even though it looks white.
  5. Snowflakes always have six sides.
  6. People believe each snowflake is unique. I can’t dispute it.
    Yet there are some general rules to their creation. No. 1: When the temperature is close to freezing, snowflakes are larger and more complex.
  7. No. 2: When the temperature is very cold, well below freezing, flakes are needle- or rod-shaped and simpler in design.
  8. In 1951 the International Commission on Snow and Ice produced a fairly simple and widely used classification system for solid precipitation. This system defines the seven principal snow crystal types as plates, stellar crystals, columns, needles, spatial dendrites, capped columns, and irregular forms.
  9. Of course, snowflakes never fall singularly. Often they came in storms. The United States experiences an average of 105 snowstorms a year.
  10. The intensity of the storm determines its name. A snowstorm is a heavy snowfall.
  11.  A blizzard has wind and snow and obscures visibility. A snow shower, on the other hand, has intermittent precipitation. And, of course, flurries are the lightest and briefest snowfall.
  12.  When it snows, the reported average amount of snowfall per day is about two inches.
  13. And what about mountain snow? Well, in the western United States, it provides 75 percent of the water supplies there.


Do you like snow? Has it snowed yet in your hometown? Please let me know. Thanks.

Sources
http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-fascinating-facts-about-snow.php
http://nsidc.org/snow/facts.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow
http://weather-facts.com/snowflakes-facts.php
http://www.cco.caltech.edu/~atomic/snowcrystals/class/class.htm

The snow pictures came from: http://www.its.caltech.edu/~atomic/snowcrystals/ If you’re a fan of snow, you should consider checking out this site.

And if you’re a fan of inspiration and writing that follows your heart, check out the Thursday’s Children posts.

Posted in Thursday Thirteen, Thursday's Children | Tagged , , | 39 Comments

Roses, the Color of Love or Something Else…what does my bouquet mean?

Posted on February 14, 2013 at 4:45 pm by Mia

 

Huzzah. I got roses this Valentine’s Day.

 

Happy Valentine’s Day! Roses are some of the most popular tokens of affection exchanged on this day, but did you ever wonder if there was a hidden message in the bouquet? In Victorian times the color of the roses had significance and some say roses tell secrets today. Want to know what the hue of your roses means? Here’s what I’ve discovered.

  1. Red. These ruby beauties talk of true love and passion, but they can also say, “Congratulations!”
  2. Deep Red or Burgundy-say, “You’re beautiful.”
  3. White shouts purity and innocence, yet sometimes they whisper, “keep quiet, keep the secret”.
  4. Pink says, “Thank you,” and signifies appreciation.
  5. Peach smiles and gives you the nudge and the wink. “Let’s get together.” Then again, sometimes it speaks of sincerity and gratitude.
  6. Coral whistles desire.
  7. Black, that deep, purple blue, can be used for death or farewell.
  8. Blue announces the unattainable, the impossible.
  9. Thorn-less roses or lavender roses are for, “Love at first sight.”
  10. Orangeis for enthusiastic desire.
  11. Red and white together speak of unity. They say, “I’m with you.”
  12. Yellow with red tips might mean just friends or they might hint at falling in love.
  13. Yellow has various meaning. Sometimes they’re used for joy, gladness or friendship, but other times they mutter about jealousy or trumpet about new beginnings.

 

Did you get or give roses this Valentine’s? Care to share. What color were they? What did you want them to say?

 

Sources

http://www.oldroses.org/roses/colors.asp

http://www.squidoo.com/RoseColorMeaning

http://www.proflowers.com/guide/rose-colors-and-meanings

 

 

Posted in Thursday Thirteen, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 31 Comments

A Bucket List Win

Posted on January 28, 2013 at 2:01 am by Mia

When I first joined the Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal Special Interest Chapter of RWA, I dreamed about writing something that might place in the Chapter’s On the Far Side Contest. For several years, I entered and my manuscript failed to place.

So I reviewed the comments of the judges, read some of the works that won and kept trying. Over the years, I realized this win was a bucket list thing for me, a quest I won’t easily give up on. I thought if my piece actually made it to the finals, and even better if it took a first place, I’d have made it as a writer.

Well, this January, the results of The 2013 On the Far Side Contest were published in the Romance Writer Reader and…drum roll, please…my manuscript, Dark Bringer, took a first.

I don’t know if I’ve made it as a writer, but I will be crossing off a goal on my bucket list. I appreciate all the judges, friends, family members, critique partners and chapter mates who helped me. Thanks.

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 434 Comments

Gearing Up To Get An Agent Status Report

Posted on September 24, 2012 at 2:27 am by Mia
Deana Barnhart

Hello. Thank you for visiting. This month has been really exciting for me because I’ve been participating in Deana Barnhart’s Gearing Up to Get an Agent.

The first week in September, I connected with a whole bunch of fellow writers and future friends. Then in the second week, I put Dark Bringer’s query and 150 of its beginning words into the Pitch Polish.  Lots of commenters helped me hone and hammer the query especially and I think we came up with something better.

Then in the third week, an act of God and a quick mouse click got Dark Bringer into The Agent Pitch Contest: Round One as one of the 200 entries, which would be visited by anonymous judges. All week, friends, judges and other interested people visited. Dark Bringer was number 28 on Jaye Robin Brown’s site Hanging On To Wonder. GUTGAA Adult Entry Agent Round Winners

Fifty entries, those with the most votes, finalized and got to go on to Agent Pitch Contest Round 2 where actual agents will visit and hopefully request manuscripts.

Dark Bringer will be one of those!  Here is the improved query and the first 150 words.

 

DARK BRINGER

ADULT PARANORMAL ROMANCE/ DYSTOPIA

107,000 words

Query:

Sometimes it makes sense to fear the dark.

In the enclosed city ofNew Theta, where imagination can string particles of darkness together to form monsters, people fear the shadow fiends just an unguarded thought away. Imaginatives–those who fantasize–are criminals. Lights blaze 24 hours a day. Electricity is king.

The dark doesn’t bother Jenvee Cohan, an electrical linesperson who maintains cables in shadowy tunnels. Ever since she inadvertently summoned the darkness that spirited her grandfather into the Void, the netherworld outside the city, she’s sworn off imagination.

That is, until a conjured nightmare throttles Agent Reese Bannon, the Bureau of Light Enforcement’s chief dark-buster in Jenvee’s sector. She breaks her vow by saving the agent’s life. He should be grateful Jenvee’s selfless act keeps him alive. Instead he tags her as his number one person of interest.

And the trouble only begins there. Jenvee’s rekindled imagination refuses to return to sleep mode. The specks of darkness won’t leave her alone. Always capering about, they cajole and needle her to give them form. As persistent as the specks and as famous thanks to news videos, Reese, the guy she’s secretly had a crush on, investigates her, further illuminating her guilt.

Reese has his own problems–starting with an extreme attraction to Ms. Cohan he just can’t shut down. He’s falling for her against his better judgment, his professional ethics and the fact that she’s an Imaginative like his brother Patrick.

Years ago, Patrick messed with the dark and died in the Void, an event that cleaved Reese’s life in two: the brief happy before and the grief-stricken crusade after. Determined to keep the dark from claiming Jenvee, Reese plans to dog her every action—to do whatever it takes to save her.

First 150 words:

Nobody said as much, but Jenvee assumed her fatal flaw–her affinity with the night particles–made her first choice for the tunnel crawl when the lights in New Theta’s Third Ward flickered and went out.

She wouldn’t ask. Not in the middle of a crisis. Not ever, really.

Although she was the newest linesperson, having only received her electrical engineering certificate last May, she strapped on her tool belt and rushed to the maintenance access to repair the faulty wiring.

Hand over hand, she scrambled down the aluminum rungs set into concrete. The illumination from above dwindled steadily until her steel-toed boots left the last rung and clicked on the access tunnel’s poured stone. Her fellow workers closed the hatch, cutting her off from the now-distant patch of battery-powered daylight and from their immediate help. She had to go alone. More people meant more minds for the night particles to play with.

 

Me pretending to be Jenvee

Me pretending to be Jenvee

Posted in Dark Bringer | Tagged , , | 207 Comments

Welcome

Posted on September 9, 2012 at 8:42 pm by Mia

Hi everyone,

I have been blogging over at the otherworld diner for quite awhile now so please take a look over there.  I will be adding my own posts here soon.

Thanks,

Mia

Posted in Uncategorized | 39 Comments