He got sick at midnight and was sick with bad headache, fever, chills, nausea, and terrible back ache. I took care of him with cold compresses, chicken soup, lots of liquids.
Twenty-four hours later he was fine. By then, I had begun to get sick: migraine, constant nausea, lymph nodes in armpit hugely swollen, exhaustion, terrible back ache, fever, and chills.
Takeaway Truth
It's been more than 36 hours, and I'm still sick with all of the above. Won't be back for a while.
Enjoy this selection of Random Friday Facts.
Categorized, they are facts about: Phobias, Pop Culture, Reading, Wildlife, History, Food, WWII.
1. Cherophobia is the irrational fear of fun or happiness.
3. Reading makes you seem sexier to women. A study showed reading makes you seem more intelligent, which is looked upon favorably by women. Therefore, the more you read, the more appealing you become to women.
“Who the heck is Ben?”
Spinning with a gasp, her eyes widened when connecting with six feet plus of drop-dead gorgeous, dark-haired man.
He met her stare full-on without so much as a hint of humility, and he nodded a curt greeting.
Coming in September...
Sand, Salt, and Spirits, A Last Chance Beach Romance by Kathryn Hills.
The morning temperature in the country is more than 10 degrees cooler than in town.
What a relief to be able to sit on the porch and enjoy a cup of coffee in the morning and breathe fresh country air. I imagine we'll stay up here a while.
In fact, I'm setting up an office here. I haven't been writing, and I've got the itch to get back to helping a woman find her true love. It's so much fun and much easier than in real life.
On the subject of summer heat, Jane Austen said, "What dreadful hot weather we have! It keeps me in a continual state of inelegance."
Inelegance? That's not how I would describe the way it feels to spend some time in the heat and humidity of summer on the Texas Gulf Coast.
I've collected quotes by Jane Austen for many years—long before I had a computer file in which to store them. I even named a character Austen after her. (Book 4 of The Good, The Bad, and The Girly, coming this year!)
Now there are several books with quotes by Jane Austen like The Smart Words and Wicked Wit of Jane Austen by Max Morris.
Takeaway Truth
Use sunscreen. Wear sunglasses. Wear a hat. (Hats are chic, fashionable, and protect delicate facial skin from the sun's ravages, i.e. skin cancer, wrinkles, brown spots, etc.)
Also, read something by or about Jane Austen.
At least that's the way it worked according to what I observed with my Darling Hubby and our 4 kids. Yep, 4 kids.
Here's what Jim Gaffigan had to say about that. "You know what it’s like having a fourth kid? Imagine you’re drowning, then someone hands you a baby."
Enjoy this selection of Random Friday Facts.
Categorized, they are facts from: American History, Food, Religiion, Weapons, Environmental, Health, WW1 Fact, Phobia, and Cats.
1. The Statue of Liberty is not actually in New York. It's actually in Jersey City, New Jersey.
2. Two of the most popular fermented foods are kimchee (Korean) and sauerkraut (German).
3. The term archangel is not found in the Hebrew Bible or the Christian Old Testament. It is found in the Greek New Testament twice to "label" Michael, previously called "one of the chief princes" in the book of Daniel.
Armed with a flashlight, you peer beneath kitchen and bathroom sinks, looking for old plumbing pipes, evidence of water leaks, and water damage.
You investigate insufferably hot attics to see if they're floored so service people can reach the air conditioning and heating systems.
You inspect ceilings and walls for telltale signs that a roof has leaked.
You scan the roof through binoculars or with the help of a drone to judge how old the roof is when a seller marks "unknown" for the age of the roof on the Seller's Disclosure.
You tromp through tall grass, checking to see if there are French drains in the yard. We've looked at several houses that should have been in excellent condition based on their price point. We've been disappointed each time.
Because home sellers often don't tell the complete truth about their homes on the Seller's Disclosure.
They hope no one will ask questions that might derail their efforts to unload a lemon of a house.
Of course, sometimes, sellers honestly don't know the information called for on a Seller's Disclosure.
We're not looking for things that may be outdated. That's generally cosmetic or decor stuff.
We don't mind doing some remodeling, but we don't want to have to re-pipe a house because the old galvanized pipes leak or have a certified electrician correct a homeowner's DIY wiring.
Caveat emptor
When buying anything, one must always remember the Latin phrase, "Caveat emptor," which means "Let the buyer beware."
That's why we thoroughly investigate every aspect of a home for sale before we plunk down $250.00 on a Contract for the option to buy if the house passes a professional inspection plus a few thousand in earnest money.
It gets costly to lose $250.00 plus the cost of the home inspection by a professional (north of another $250.00 to 500.00+). Sure, we'd get our earnest money back, but we'd be out the $250.00 plus the cost of the inspection.
If you fall in love with your dream home, you will rationalize the problems with it. The result will be a house you come to hate because it will drain your bank account.
What to Investigate
Everything! Open every door, cupboard, drawer, and closet.
Run the water in all the faucets. Flush every toilet. Check every window and door for water damage. Look under every sink.
Check the attic to make sure there is easy access to the systems up there. Ask questions of your realtor if you don't understand something.
Check the yard to make sure rainwater drains away from the house.
If appliances are included with the house, check them out to make sure they work properly.
Takeaway Truth
When househunting, check everything thoroughly and ask your realtor for the names of really good home inspectors who should check everything I've mentioned and more. Always remember, "Caveat emptor."
Sorry, I couldn't resist. Read on, and you'll see why I chose that "rocking" phrase.
M.J. Schiller, author of the Love and Chaos Series, is my guest today.
She stopped by to share her new release, Rock It To The Moon, the third book in her Love and Chaos Series.
Discover M.J. Schiller
Let me tell you a little about M.J. She's a lunch lady and a romance-romantic suspense writer.
She enjoys writing novels whose characters include rock stars, desert princes, teachers, futuristic Knights, construction workers, cops, and a wide variety of others.
In her mind everybody has a romance. She is the mother of a 22 year-old and three 20 year-olds. That's right, triplets! So having recently taught four children to drive, she likes to escape from life on occasion by pretending to be a rock star at karaoke. However…you won’t be seeing her name on any record labels soon.
You Can Find M.J. Here
Website | BookBub | Facebook | Pinterest
I've published a rock romance collection before—standalone books related by the fact that they are rock romances—but this is my first rock romance series, and I have enjoyed writing it immensely.
Don’t get me wrong, I also had fun with writing the books in my Rocking Romance Collection. I hid some other connections between the books, in addition to their theme.
For instance, Beth Donovan, the heroine in my first rock romance, Trapped Under Ice, is a romance writer. One of her fictional books was titled Abandon All Hope. That became the title for my second rock romance about rocker Chase Hatton and his long lost love Hope.
Chase then made a cameo appearance in my chick lit Devilish Divas Series. In Book One, To Hell in a Coach Bag, the heroine falls in love with a roadie at a Chase Hatton concert.
Chase even makes an appearance in the Love and Chaos Series. In Book One, Rocked By Grace, Chase is the mentor of Just Short of Chaos’ lead singer, Zane Sanders, and Chase opens for the group when they’re on tour.
This was inspired by a concert I attended where real life lead singer Brendon Urie of Panic! At The Disco insisted that his idols while growing up, the members of Wheezer, be the main act and Panic! be the opener.
It was a sweet gesture, but when Panic! finished playing and Wheezer came out, the majority of the audience left. It was sad. Their roles had reversed and Wheezer was considered past its prime by most.
Book One, Rocked By Grace, centers around the hotheaded, often rash, lead singer of the band and a woman he pulls on stage, Grace Prescott.
Book Two, Rocked By Love, focuses on bassist Raphael Santiago’s relationship with reporter Mia Love.
This release, Rock It To The Moon is about drummer Dex Rogan and Zane’s little sister, Tatum Salvetti. Tatum and Dex share a love for and interest in outer space.
Book Four, Rock of Salvation, will highlight guitarist Jericho Tyler and preacher’s daughter Salvation Jones.
Each of the band members has a public persona, but the person who they are deep inside contrasts with it.
Zane is the face of the band and appears to be outgoing. In reality he has a lot of social anxiety and has to work at being the band’s front man.
Rafe is the cool, intelligent, in control member of the band on the surface, but he is dealing with a lot of grief and guilt concerning the death of their former drummer.
Dex, on the surface, seems like a simple guy with simple needs and not a lot of thought going on. But Dex is actually intelligent, sensitive, and loyal.
Jericho may be the most confused of all. He has bought into his image of the never-serious wild man of the band and has lost touch with who he really is, a homebody who enjoys nature and family.
It’s been great that, although each book centers on one band member, the others still appear and we can see them grow even after their story is in the books, literally.
Plus, along with following previous characters, with each book we get to add new characters to the mix and get to know them with all their strengths and weaknesses. In fact, writing this series has been so much fun, I may have to do it again some time.
While love had come to some of the other members of Just Short Of Chaos, Dex Rogan had no interest in getting tangled up in that mess. That is, until he stumbled upon Tatum backstage.
Before Tatum, I would have told you love was for chumps. But I would have been wrong. The moment I saw her, it was like BAM! This driving urge to be with her was more jarring than someone smacking me in the face with my drumsticks would be. And every moment since has just solidified her place in my heart. By the time I found out she was off limits, it was too late. I was all in.
Tatum Salvetti doesn’t have time for love. If it can’t be color-coded or found on the periodic table, she doesn’t need it. But when an ugly incident drives her into Dex’s arms, she’s shaken enough to step out of character for once.
I wasn’t looking for love that night, I was looking to escape, and Dex was the perfect distraction from my train wreck of a life. …He was perfect, period.
But I’m in astrophysics. I’m not stupid. I knew it wasn’t going anywhere. Even if he wasn’t just interested in a one night stand, we wouldn’t be able to hide a relationship from Zane. My brother seemed to still think of me as the ten-year-old he met when our parents wed. Well, it wasn’t any ten-year-old girl in Dex Rogan’s bed that night, and if Zane found out about it, he would go apeshit. I was trying to get away from chaos, not create it.
Tatum has sacrificed her whole life for others. But maybe this time she could think of her own desires. Could Dex’s brand of chaos be just what she needs?
He pushed his hair from his face. He wore it long on top and I knew sometimes, like tonight, he simply let if fall in straight, sleek lines. Sometimes he would use product to flip it back and tousle it, as I saw in an interview in Rolling Stone magazine. The picture covered an entire page and it was what first stirred the lust in my blood.
“This is your new drummer?”
Zane and I were seated at the kitchen table. He leaned forward to take a peek at the photo. “Yeah.”
“Holy cow.”
“What?” He was visiting with Whitney at the other end of the table but now turned his attention fully to me. “You think he’s hot or something?”
“Hot? Hot doesn’t even come close. Flaming, scorching, sizzling…”
“Smoking,” Whitney added.
“Smoking, blazing—”
Zane waved a hand. “All right already. I get the picture.”
“Whit, come over here. You’ve got to see this.”
She got up and meandered my way. “You forget, I’ve seen him in person.”
“Oh, yeah.” She’d been to Zane and Grace’s a number of times but I hadn’t had the opportunity yet. Working full time at Frick’s Market in Sullivan—a neighboring city to my hometown of Stanton—and studying astrophysics demanded all of my time. And then some. “Is he as good in—?”
“In bed.” Whitney finished. “I wouldn’t know, sis.”
I smacked her arm. “In person.”
She ogled the picture. “Better.”
“Ooh.”
“Let me see it.” She made a grab for the magazine but I was too quick.
“No way. He’s mine.”
Zane rolled his eyes. “Oh, my God. What happened to you guys playing with dolls and Barbies?”
“Ken,” I said straight-faced.
They laughed.
Zane leaned back. “Why, Tatum. You’ve developed a sense of humor since I’ve been gone.”
My stepdad entered the room and we all sat up, eyeing him warily. “I had to,” I muttered.
Whitney was right. He was even better in person.
