Friday, April 8, 2016

Give Something New A Try



Under the advisement of a life coach friend of mine, I am attempting to make better choices when it comes to food consumption. So, today, while I'm working at my favorite coffee shop (see pic), I decided to switch from my usual morning green tea (gunpowder) and opt for a "surprise" drink. The wonderful barista, who just happens to be one of their best employees (in my opinion) asked what fruits I like and created a strawberry/peach 'n' ice drink. To my utmost shock (as I really wanted my tea) the flavors burst onto my tongue like a crisp summer breeze. I can make out the hints of each fruit flavor along with the coolness of the frozen goodness.

This is a drink I would highly recommend and proves to me that you are never too old to try something new. And it just might give me the kick start I need to jump into writer mode for a few hours, as I hear the ASC crew beckoning me as I type these words. 

Does this mean I will be avoiding my caffeinated favorite latte? Or my green tea that I so dearly enjoy? Nope! But it does mean I will be choosing them less often and opting for a healthier variety beverage. And for those of you who want to fuss at me about my drink choices, let me tell you that I am an all day, every day water drinker, so don't be hatin' on me for indulging in the yummy goodness of a turtle latte, gun powder tea, or fruit 'n' ice.




Sunday, April 3, 2016

How do you spell RELIEF?



No! It is not ROLAIDS®, although I have taken my fair share of those over the years. Ha! Ha!

My question refers to that feeling you get when a large project has come to an end and you have met the deadline.

Recently, I have been working on a volunteer project that was a major undertaking. I discovered that my extensive history working with this same type of project didn't help very much, at first. As time went by, I was able to fall into more of a routine about how to be manipulate several software programs to unite one project. As in, I had to create an image in one program then bring it over to the publishing program. It made life much easier doing this, although it was somewhat time consuming.

One thing I learned for sure is if I plan to undertake this project again, I will be implementing multiple ideas to help streamline the process. I figure if there is a way to make things run more smoothly, why not give it a try. Am I right?

Also, I discovered I have a whole new respect for the person who formerly lent their time and energy year after year after year. I understand why she "passed the hat" and I had some very big shoes to step into. The bar was set high, that's for sure. Of course, deep down, I love the challenge, even if I gripe and grumble about the steps it takes to get to the end.

I will admit that I had to put my training in stress management to work, several times during this project. Especially when you are this close (holds thumb and forefinger close together) to being finished with something and the Internet decides to refresh your browser. Or you move your mouse to save your work and the computer does a restart (because you didn't see the notice that it was going to update, but that's not YOUR fault, it's the computer's). Yep, had that one happen last night after I reached the end of the project and it restarted making me lose everything I had done over a two hour period. Which, too late, reminded me that you should save your work OFTEN!! Of course, there are always programs that saving doesn't do any good if you're in the middle of an edit. (For example: picmonkey, which I love as a photo editing program, but hate that you can't go back later to re-edit or continue editing.)

Now that I can take deep, calming breaths again, I can move forward on the Ackerman Security Consultants (ASC) series. While I have part of Yours to Have (book five) written, the characters have been constantly letting me know they are being neglected. At least that's how they feel. Personally, I think they are doing just fine because they spend an awful lot of time arguing with each other "in my head".

If you're following along with the series, you know that this book will be centered around Cole Munson, Hannah's administrative assistant. There are going to be some interesting things revealed about Mr. Munson. Some of them shocking. (Or at least they were to me.)

Then there is Halston Davies. She first appears in Mine to Have (book four) where hints of her past are mentioned. She's a tough as nails, former military, kick ass female who spends her spare time reading Guns & Ammo.

Will she overcome her hatred of Cole? Will Cole be able to break through Halston's hard shell and convince her of what he's known from the first moment his eyes gazed upon her?

Stay tuned to find out the answers to these and other questions that have been left unanswered as the lives of the ASC crew continue to progress.