Provoking Thoughts

Normally I do not discuss religion, as it is a very hot topic for a lot of people. However, I came across a very thought-provoking article on ReligiousTolerance.org this morning and wanted to share it. There is one sentence that truly sums up “true” religion: Unless God were to take the initiative, it appears that there is no way for humans to determine which religion is "true."

The article can be found here: http://www.religioustolerance.org/reltrue.htm

I happen to agree with that sentence whole-heartedly. The “true” religion to me may not necessarily be the “true” religion of the Hindu next door. I understand that and respect it. It bothers me that there is still so much intolerance towards religion in my country, which is guaranteed by the US Constitution. Freedom of Religion means ANY religion.

Being Wiccan myself, I know there are people who would judge me as a “heathen” or “devil-worshipper” (of which I am neither). Nevertheless, I also know that there are just as many non-judgmental people. They may not agree with my religious choice, but they respect the fact that it is my choice and don’t preach that I am wrong simply because I believe different.

I truly believe that there should be more open-mindedness then there is in my country. This goes far beyond religion. In my opinion, everyone should be allowed to be happy regardless of race, gender, religion or sexual affiliation. It should not be up to me or anyone else to dictate what is “right” when it comes to other people’s happiness.

Hopefully, for those that read the above article, it will give you a lot to think about. I would love to hear your thoughts and opinions, so please feel free to leave a comment.

Future Man

I decided to share one of my short stories with you all today. Enjoy:

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I dragged myself out of bed to answer the pounding door. Who the hell would be at my door? The sun isn’t even up yet, I thought. The pounding became more urgent.

“Alright,” I yelled, “don’t get your panties in a twist.” I glanced out the peephole, not recognizing the man standing on the other side. He was an older gentleman, somewhere in his 60’s by his appearance. He carried a fairly worn briefcase.

“Grace, I know you’re there. Please open the door; it’s a matter of life or death.”

“How the hell do you know my name? I’ve never seen you before in my life,” I called through the door.

“Let me in and I can explain everything, but we must hurry.” I hesitated, but I must admit I was intrigued by the man for some odd reason. Against my better judgment, I opened the door. He burst into my living room.

“Quick, close it. No one must know I am here.” I quietly closed the apartment door and slid the lock into place.

“Alright, who are you and what are you doing here?”

“My name is William and I am from the future. I am here because I must warn you about a very deadly mistake you made today.”

“Ok…could you explain a bit more? What mistake do I make that is so deadly?”

“Well, first let me explain how it affects the future so you have a full understanding of why I came here to warn you.”

“Right, I’m calling the police now.”

“No! Aunt Grace, you must listen to me. You cannot die today, for if you do the implications are most dire for the entire world. It is because of you that our country does not start a nuclear war. You are destined to be the designer of a better world.”

“Uh-huh. Why would I believe you?” He set the briefcase on my coffee table and shuffled through it.

“Here, look for yourself.” He handed me a family photograph and pointed to a wizened old woman. “That is you, Aunt Grace, as you are meant to be. You were the first female president and the one who finally brought peace and prosperity to the world. The only reason these photos exist is because I came here to keep you alive today.”

I looked closer at the old woman in the photo. She had the same gray eyes that I saw in my mirror every day. I shook my head in disbelief.

“You get into a cab later today, but you will not leave that cab alive. The cab driver is a suicide bomber and in my history book, he not only killed you, but hundreds of others. Promise me that you will not get into a cab today.”

“That’s crazy. You’re saying I should just take a bus then?”

“No, downtown is not a place you want to be today Aunt Grace. You should call out of work today. Stay home and protect yourself.”

“I could always just work from home today.”

“Trust me, it won’t matter anyways. It is your office building that was destroyed when the cab driver crashed into the first floor and detonated his bomb.”

I reached out carefully with my mind to probe his. I didn’t like to read others’ minds, but sometimes I had to. I needed to know if this man spoke the truth. You’re not the only one with that power, Aunt Grace. I jumped at the sound of his voice inside my mind.

“So my brother passes on our genes then?”

“Yes and he is a wonderful dad. In the past, or I should say now, when you were killed, dad couldn’t live with the grief. Your death just destroyed him inside. If you live, he will not hang himself and in about a year from now, you will meet me for the very first time.”

“Alright, since it won’t do me any real harm to stay home today, I will. Let me call my boss and I’ll just tell her it’s a family emergency.”

“Thank you, Aunt Grace. Now, I must go before I change the future even further.”

“William, can I ask just one question?”

“Sure.”

“Who chose your name?”

“You did. My mother died giving birth to me and it was you that talked dad into naming me after her. Her name was Willa. Now, I really must go.” He faded from sight and I made the fateful call to work.

So Many Victorian Questions

Well, after writing more to my story set in Victorian England, I have so many questions. I went and ordered 3 books to hopefully help me answer all the things I don’t know. I am also actively looking for 19^th century maps of various towns/villages around Stonehenge (Amesbury and Salisbury for starters).

I also did find a rather entertaining TV series called Victorian Farm. Since the program never came to the states, I watched it on YouTube. Why do the British seem to have TV shows that are so much more interesting then the reality crap we have here?

If any of you are interested, the books I ordered are: Victorian Family Save-All, Victorian Pharmacy and Book of the Farm. I would like to point out that Book of the Farm is not actually the version featured in Victorian Farm. It was reprinted in 3 separate volumes. If you might be interested in purchasing it, please keep that in mind.

A New Beginning

I started a new story yesterday morning, below is an excerpt of what I have so far (please remember this is only a first draft). This brought up 2 questions for me that I had to look up. Since I'm not all that familiar with British history of the Stonehenge area, I'm not entirely positive my deduction for question #2 is correct.

1. What towns are near Stonehenge? I found that Amesbury was the closest at only 2 miles away. I credit the Visit Wiltshire website with this answer.

2. Would there have been any paved roads? Given the era (and the fact that there were no cars in the 1870's) I figured that cobblestone streets would not have been laid outside of the small towns (if they even had cobblestone roads in the town).

Feel free to comment and let me know what you think so far! I would also greatly appreciate any websites/books that have information on Victorian-era Wiltshire County.

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I closed my eyes and felt the power of the earth and stones. We had finally scrounged and saved enough over the last year to make this trip. Now we stood at Stonehenge and I could sense the depth of thousands of generations in the soil under my feet. Sean took my hand and brought it to his lips. I smiled, but didn’t drop my focus on the vibrations of nature.

After several minutes more, I did open my eyes again, only to witness the glorious sunset. The red and pink sky was absolutely stunning. I understand why the ancients worshipped the sun as a god. It was their lifeblood. Sean let my hand drop and I walked closer to the stones.

The energy rolling off them was incredible. It made me wonder just how many people feel nothing. To most people, they probably just see stones and want to know how they got there without modern machinery.

Sean did not follow me toward the stones. He knew well enough that my complete focus was on the stone circle in front of me. I strolled slowly into the circle of stones and brushed my hand gently on one of the still-standing center stones. I walked slowly around the circle three times.

I felt the energy of the earth shift. Something wasn’t right; I started to back out of the stone circle. Suddenly, I was hit by a wave of energy so powerful; it brought me to my knees. I waited for the reeling sensation to stop before I stood.

“Sean?” There was no response. I charged out of the stones to where he had been standing. He wasn’t there. I looked toward the parking lot, but there were no cars. There was no paved road in front of me either.

With the sun setting, I started to panic. It would be twilight in a matter of minutes. Until I could figure out what the hell had happened, I needed to find someplace relatively safe. I knew Amesbury was only about a 2 mile walk, so I started hiking in that direction.

Victorian England

I've finally made a choice as to the era my story will be set in. Now comes the fun part: research! I plan on finding out about various things during that time period, such as: music, hygiene, medicine, popular parlor games (no TV!), day-to-day meals and also what homes would have looked like (floor plan, cleanliness and all the nitty-gritty details).

Now it’s time to find books, music and possibly a few historians that I can interview. Another thing I like to have when I’m writing is pictures (of houses, fashion and other general things from that time). It keeps me focused (and can also give commonplace elements).

Now is where I ask you all, if you know of any good resources (books, websites, composers, etc.) that are distinctly Victorian, please comment! Also, in your comment, leave your favorite first name (male or female; Victorian or not) and I will work it into the final story and post it here.

Torn Between Eras

I’ve been really gunning to start a new writing project based in a historical era, but I’m having trouble committing to the era. I’m torn between 1700’s America, Edwardian England, or Renaissance England/France.

I know I would have to do tons of research for all 3 because I want to make sure all the historical little details are right (even if I’m not completely historically accurate). This is where all of you come in! I need help to decide which era/country I’m going to write about.

Now, don’t stop there because I’m also looking for good music to add to my writing playlist. I do prefer the music not have lyrics, however, as lyrics can be really distracting. So far my playlist includes the following (artist followed by album):

David Arkenstone

The Celtic Book Of Days (See all New Age Music CDs)

Music Inspired by Middle Earth featuring David Arkenstone (See all Pop Music CDs)

Spirit of Ireland (See all New Age Meditation Music CDs)

Enaid

Avalon - A Celtic Legend

Secret Garden

Dawn of a New Century (See all Classical Music CDs)

Earthsongs (See all Pop Music CDs)

Once in a Red Moon (See all New Age Music CDs)

Songs From a Secret Garden (See all Classical Music CDs)

White Stones (See all Irish Folk Music CDs)

If you have an artist/band you think would be great on this list then leave a comment below with your vote for the era/location and choice of music!

Writer's Conference?

More and more recently, I've been seriously considering attending a writer's conference. I know going to one this year is not an option as I'll be using all my vacation time for my wedding, but that gives me more time to save money.

I plan on doing some research to find one somewhere in the northeast. That means Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Conneticut and possibly New York. I'm hoping I can find a great conference in NH, southern ME or northern MA so I don't have to travel/rent a hotel room. Although, I wouldn't mind traveling to the UK.

That said, I am open to any and all recommendations (even if they are outside the northeast). So please leave a comment! Also, many thanks in advance.

One last thing before I let you all go; I am looking for my next book of the month (July) so if you have a favorite book you'd like to see featured on here please leave a comment with the book title and author!

No Power Last Night = Glimpse inside my head

Good morning (or afternoon/evening depending on which part of the world you’re in). We finally have power back this morning. We had no power most of the day yesterday and the same transformer blew a second time about an hour after I got home from work. Since I had nothing better to do last night, I sat at the dining room table and wrote by candlelight. So for your entertainment, I decided to use today’s post for last night’s musings. Enjoy!

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2 June 2011 – Starting around 7:30pm EST

There’s not much else to do tonight as we don’t have power right now. Rick (my fiancé) told me the building had been without power most of the day; it came back on about 10 minutes before I got home. About an hour later, the same transformer blew out again.

We’ve been without power since then. It doesn’t appear that it will be fixed tonight. Right now I’ve got candles going so I have light to write by. Rick’s already gone to bed. Interestingly enough, we have power in the bedroom; only in the bedroom.

I was on the computer playing The Sims 3 until Rick wanted to go to bed. Now I’m writing. It’s been so long since I’ve written by hand (instead of typing), my hand is already starting to cramp. That’s pretty sad, I think.

It is going to be a very long and boring evening. Usually on Thursday nights, I watch Police Women of Broward County. Yes, I have no life because I stoop to watching reality TV. What can you do on a work night when you’re not really a partier though?

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Writing Prompt:

“You know, on some days it’s like I can see the whole ‘divine plan’ behind the universe. On others, I think the world was thrown together from whatever bits of trash the universe could spare.”

“Well aren’t you just a ray of sunshine today?”

“I’m serious Kaylee. Did you hear about that 16-year-old kid that murdered his parents? You can’t seriously think God had a plan for him.”

“Actually, I do. There is always something good that comes out of anything bad. Maybe one of that kids family members made a commitment to get off drugs before they’re murdered by a drug dealer or something.”

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I just took a glance outside and it looks like we may be in for another storm at some point (just an FYI…we did not get any storms last night). It’s gotten cloudy and it’s been windy most of the day. If we do get more thunderstorms, I hope it doesn’t spawn any tornadoes like those in Western MA (this happened on Wednesday).

Four people were killed by those. It’s really rare for us to get tornadoes this far north. Although, this is, I believe, the 3rd time that I can remember.

The first tornado in MA, that I can remember, was in Great Barrington, MA back in 1995 (I was only 11 at the time). That was 16 years ago. I think it stuck in my memory because I was a kid and up until that point, I’d never heard of such a thing.

Alright, it’s about 9pm now and honestly, the candlelight is making me drowsy. I’m off to bed now and pray to the gods we have power back tomorrow morning. I’ll be pissed if I have to throw out all the meat in our fridge and freezer.

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I hope you enjoyed the glimpse into my mind. And yes, we did have power back when I woke up this morning (around 5am). Nothing in the fridge spoiled (at least not the stuff I’ve checked so far). I might cook the chicken tonight if I’m feeling better.

Hope you’re all having a wonderful day!

Book of the Month - June

I read a really good book last weekend (in the evenings) called One Second After. It's basically a fictional account of a small North Carolina town after the United States is struck by an EMP (Electro-Magnetic Pulse) that wipes out all electronics.


Think cars, lights, cell phones, electric stoves, computers, etc. The author William Forstchen really did his research right down to the nitty-gritty details. The storyline itself is really creepy (because it is dead-on and could happen). Mr. Forstchen really knows how to wrench your gut with emotion. I found myself crying more then once while reading this book.

If you're looking for something to read on vacation (or anytime really), I highly recommend this book. Just make sure that you keep a box of tissues handy because you'll need them!

Today is good

I tracked every last bite yesterday and today, so I'm doing much better then the first couple of days. Sadly, my leg is still swollen (all that walking this last week + heat/humidity). I did not walk at lunch today for two reasons: 1. It was humid and hot and 2. My leg still hurts.

On another note, I heard from a friend of mine that he's been reading my blog and wants to see more of my 'musings' on here. So, I went out and purchased a new notebook for writing and plan on doing some over the weekend. I'll post the better pieces/fragments here next week.

Disappointed in Myself

After all that walking and exercise that I'm not used to this past weekend, I ended up gaining 2 pounds. Our scale has me at 310lbs. That's 4 pounds less than my absolute heaviest last autumn. To say I am vastly disappointed in myself is an understatement. Below is a picture of me this past Sunday.

On the other side of the coin, I did make myself walk for 30 minutes at lunchtime today, even though every step hurt. As promised, below you’ll find some photos from our trip to the mountains. These were all taken at The Flume Gorge near Franconia, NH.

One of my favorite waterfall shots from this weekend. Considering I have a 5+ year old camera (that's maybe 5-6 megapixels), I'd say it came out awesome!

And of course, I had to add the obligatory shot of the mountains! Hope you're all having a great Tuesday!

Back from the Mountains

We got back fairly early this morning (around 9:30-10ish) and have been trying to cool off ever since. It is really hot and humid here today (around 80°F or 26°C). I decided to forgo the weigh-in until the swelling in my leg goes down.

We visited the Lost River Gorge on Saturday and the Flume Gorge yesterday (which is 2+ miles). Both were about an hour's drive from the cabin we rented in the Weirs Beach/Laconia area. At one point we considered checking out Canterbury Shaker Village...until we got there and realized they didn't open for another hour.

All in all this weekend went well, even if my leg does hurt like hell. It was worth it because I got some great pictures. I plan on posting a few of them with tomorrow's post. As for now, its getting late and I'm exhausted!

Weekend in the Mountains

Alright, I can do this. 3 days up in the White Mountains without a computer means 3 days of not being able to use the food journal on WeightWatchers.com. Monday is my weigh-in, so I have to be at least semi-good this weekend.

I bought watermelon and grapes to take with us, and already had apples in the fridge. I also bought Fiber One pancake mix (more fiber, less sugar). I’ll let you all know how it tastes when I get back. Since the cabin we rented also has a grill, I got some 90/10 hamburgers (leanest they had) and some Baked Lays.

I heard that it’s supposed to be really nice this weekend, so I’m going to drag Rick out to walk around with me when I take pictures. I will be back at some point on Monday and will post the best of my photos from the weekend.

I will also make sure to let you all know how I did with my weigh-in. Since I’ve gone for 30-minute walks at lunch the last 2 days (and will be walking more this weekend), it might be off a bit thanks to my leg swelling.

Hope you all have a good weekend and I will see you on Monday!

No longer on hiatus

I'm appalled at myself that it’s been over a year since I wrote on this blog. I have to say, I have missed it terribly. Since so much has happened in the last year, let me give you the condensed version:
For starters, back in December my sister had her third son, so I am the proud of auntie of three wonderful nephews now. Next up, I got engaged in January and will be getting married this October. We'll be having a Star Wars themed wedding and I cannot wait! It's going to be epic awesomeness!

On that note, all eyes (or at least my mom’s side) are on me to bring a little girl into this family; which won’t happen until well after the wedding and a significant weight loss (think at least 50 pounds).

I recently stepped back on a scale after several months of being unaccountable. I was at 297 when I stopped weight watchers last time (down from 314), but when I saw that I am back to 308 it was a wakeup call.

For those that aren’t already aware, I have a genetic pre-disposition to DVT’s (or blood clots) called Factor V Leiden. I found this out at age 20 when I developed a blood clot behind my left knee. I got a 2^nd blood clot in the exact same area at age 25 (after being laid out on the sofa with pneumonia for 2 weeks).

That was 3 years ago, and since then I have been on blood thinner (and will be for the rest of my life most likely). This means I have to be careful when flying, going into the mountains or if I have children (higher hormone levels increase the risk…that’s why it’s on birth control warnings).

That being said, losing weight (even just 5-10%) will be a huge help. Hopefully, it will also allow me to get out and walk more without hurting as much (nerve damage/chronic pain from the first clot). I used to walk several miles in a day, but now walking even 1 mile makes my leg swell and hurt for a few days afterwards. That means I will be making use of our apartment complex’s pool this summer.

So if you like, pull up a chair, grab your favorite beverage and join me as I write not just about fictional characters, but also about my weight-loss journey.