Friday, January 30, 2015

A Friday Photo and the Passage of Time


Hello :-)

Today I'm back with another photo since it's Friday. As I've mentioned before, I'll be sharing photos that are new along with ones that are from my archives. Well, this one is an older photo. When I looked at the date listed for when I took it, I was taken aback. This was taken in 2010. Wow! I know that it's cliche to say it, but time really flies!

Sometimes when I look back at older photos I truly can't believe just how long ago they were taken. I know that 2010 isn't a million years ago, but as I mature it seems that the years fly by faster and faster. My parents used to always tell me that time goes by really quickly and they used to advise me to enjoy being a child or enjoy being younger. I took their advice as well as I could and I enjoyed those growing up years. But now when I look back to what they said I really get the gravity of what they were saying. It's not that I feel like I'm running out of time or anything, but at this point in my life I feel more and more how precious life is and that life is precious because it's finite. We are here for a blip of time so every day is a gift. I didn't mean to start sounding like a greeting card, but sometimes things just hit you. You know? :-)

Now, to get back to my original thought...time flies and I can't believe that this photo was taken four and a half years ago. I would have guessed maybe eighteen months to two years ago. Anyway, I took this photo during a walk in the woods. As you can see it's a bit of ivy growing on a rock. The photo is kinda blurry, but I prefer to call it atmospheric...Lol. Looking at the picture today, I'm thinking that I wish that I could go back and find that same rock to see if the ivy has totally overtaken the rock or whatever. Hmmm. I wonder...the mysteries of the Wiltshire, England countryside ;-)

So that's my photo for this Friday. I hope you enjoy taking a look. 

Have a great Friday and a wonderful weekend! 

Until next time...

Thursday, January 29, 2015

I'll Be Back

Hello :-)

This is a very short post to say that I will be back with a longer post tomorrow. I've been put off my new posting schedule because of an injury, but I will be okay. I seem to be having a run of obstacles lately, but I'm not deterred :-) I always look at things like this as a detour along my path, so all will be well.

Have a great day and I'll be back tomorrow!

Friday, January 23, 2015

Floral Friday Photo



Hello! :-)

As I mentioned in my previous post, I'm going to be sharing a photo here on Fridays. Sometimes it'll be kind of random, but random is good ;-)

So today's photo is simple. As you can see it's some lovely flowers. I love having flowers around in the winter to brighten things up every once in a while. I can't have them all the time, but once in a while is nice.

If you visit me here on a regular basis you also know that I love playing with Photoshop. I've had Photoshop for years, but I'm still such a newbie with it. (Hee hee) One day I'll sit down and learn what it can really do, but for now I'm content to fiddle with it. I think it's like doodling for me. I've always drawn little pictures in the margins of things I'm writing, so I'm a doodler. And the more that I think about it perhaps this is a kind of digital doodling for me. I don't know. Just a thought. (shrug)

The photos above are the original and the ones that I fiddled around with on Photoshop. Looking at them now, they look kind of like floral postage stamps. Lol.

Anyway, that's my photo for today :-)

I hope that everyone has a great weekend!

Wednesday, January 21, 2015

Writing of Two Kinds

Hello again. Happy Wednesday! :-)


As I mentioned in my previous post, I'm getting back on track with things and that includes working on my book again. It feels like it's been put aside for months and months instead of a few weeks. But I guess that's good because I'm seeing it with fresh eyes. When I was going to university, they always said it was good to step away for a bit and come back to what you're writing with fresh eyes. I don't think they meant three or four weeks. Lol. But still it's good to get a fresh perspective.

Also, I'm getting into more regular posting here. Yay! My plan is to post three times a week, which will probably be Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. There may be some slight variations sometimes, but it'll be good for me to get into a rhythm here again :-)  Fridays will usually be a photo day. As you know, I love taking pictures like many do, so I'll be sharing some new and older photos. Sometimes they'll be kind of random, but hey sometimes the beauty of life is in its randomness.

So I hope you'll visit me again soon. I'm off now to go hang out with my book characters.

Have a great day! :-)

Monday, January 19, 2015

2015 For Me Now

Hi there! :-)

This is more like a New Year's post of sorts because I'm so behind due to being sick. You know what it's like...when you're put out of commission like that, everything falls behind. So I'm about three weeks behind, but I'm getting back on track. Lol.

I'm usually one of those people who plans a bit at the end of the year that's ending in order to have myself in the right frame of mind when January 1st arrives. I know that we can't plan everything and it's not an obsessive thing on my part, but I'm the kind of person who likes to assess things right before I move into the next phase. I usually journal a little bit. Even though I didn't get to experience things like I wanted I just let it go and didn't worry. I accepted the fact that I was sick and that I needed to get well so everything else went out the window. So as Big Ben struck midnight, I rolled over to watch it on television about thirty seconds before midnight. Once the bells tolled and I saw a few fireworks, I turned the television off and went to sleep. I was REALLY feeling bad! Lol.

When I woke up on New Year's Day I just took it easy. It was the ultimate in living in the moment. New Year's Day is bittersweet for me over these last few years since it's the anniversary of my mom passing away. It was hard those first years, especially since I was living so far away from everything that I knew. It was extremely tough, but with time I've learned to live with it. I'll never get over losing her or my father...I don't imagine that anyone does, but for me I just accept it and do my best to move forward. I always carry their memory in my heart.

New Year's Day is still a day that I love because it starts a fresh new year. I'm usually quite lowkey on that day. This year I was that way even more because I was under the weather. It was a good day though considering, so I'm grateful for that.

Anyway, now that we're about three weeks into 2015 I'm finally feeling like I'm catching up with everyone else :-) Even though my fresh 2015 came in rather slow and delayed, I'm now in the frame of mind to go forward.

I hope that everyone is having a great 2015 so far and I hope the whole year is great! :-)

I'm going to be posting on a more regular schedule this year whenever possible so please visit me again when you can :-) I feel the need to bring more of myself back into my space here, like I did almost seven years ago when I started this blog. I've gone away from my original theme in the last while, so I'm excited to share more of me here again. I'll be back with more details about my posting schedule in a couple of days. Until then, thank you for visiting me and I hope you have a good day!

And to everyone back home, I wish you a wonderful Martin Luther King Jr. Day. 

"I have decided to stick with love. Hate is too great a burden to bear."

- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. 

***

"Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere."

- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.


Wednesday, January 14, 2015

Writing Spotlight: Colette Paul

Today I'd like to share a poem from my friend Colette. She is a wonderful writer and I always enjoy her poetry so much. I don't have the gift for poetry like she does...I'm more of a short story and longer piece person, so I really marvel at how she expresses herself in this way! :-)

Please have a listen and visit her at her Youtube channel.

Also you can visit her on her blog here and her Facebook page here



Sunday, January 11, 2015

TO HONOR THE HEART: A Call for Submissions

Today I have something very important to share. My friend Claudia Moss is putting together an anthology called To Honor the Heart: women's stories of rape. This will be an opportunity for rape survivors to lift their voices and share their stories. Please take a look at the guidelines below in Claudia's own words, to find out about this important upcoming anthology and I would appreciate it so much if you would share this information with others. Thank you in advance!


CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS

As a rape survivor shattering years of silence, I am compiling approximately 50 stories to include in an anthology of power, grace and forgiveness entitled TO HONOR THE HEART: women’s stories of rape.

An anthology of this nature has not been written since Dr. Charlotte Pierce-Baker shared her survivor story along with those of 11 other women and 5 men (men’s stories about the women they loved who were raped) in SURVIVING THE SILENCE: black women’s stories of rape. Pierce-Baker’s remarkable collection was published June 17, 2000.

This anthology is long overdue.

I am seeking SUBMISSIONS from ALL women (African, Asian, Black, Indian, Latina, Native, White and all other ethnicities; bi, lesbian, pansexual, straight, trans, etc.) who have survived the trauma of rape and molestation.

You are being invited to participate in this ground-breaking anthology, a loving space to embrace all of our voices in telling the unspeakable to unburden and honor the heart. If you have never shared your story with another soul, now is the time to tell. If you have already shared your story as a rape survivor, this is another opportunity for you to connect with a wider audience.

The way forward is to tell. Our telling forms a much-needed community of voices. Telling is an act of courage that may help save a wounded woman screaming silently inside.

If you are in the surrounding area, in or outside of Atlanta, GA, you can arrange to meet with me, and I will interview you to record your telling, if you prefer.

This Call for Submissions will culminate in a printed and a digital publication.

I am open to the following types of submissions: personal narratives/essays and poetry.

SUBMISSION GUIDELINES:

* Personal narratives/essays: 800 to 1500 words

* Poetry: 3 poems or no more than 1000 words

* Submissions should be in Microsoft Word, one-inch margins. They are also acceptable in Google Docs.

* You are free to use a pseudonym if anonymity is necessary. You are also able to submit Anonymously.

Deadline for Submissions is March 31, 2015.

Send your submission and a BIO to MissClaudiaMoss@gmail.com with the subject line as follows:

To Honor the Heart submission — [First name] and [Last name]

Please direct all questions about your submission to me at MissClaudiaMoss@gmail.com.

Thursday, January 08, 2015

Feeling Better

Hello :-)

I'm feeling much better today and the sun is shining so I'm happy. I only have a bit of a lingering cough, but I'm sure that that will go away soon. I'm drinking lots of water and ginger tea so I should be good to go in no time :-)

Today I'm going to be getting myself back on track some, so that means catching up with emails, writing down a few notes, and basically just starting my 2015 properly eight days into the year. Hey, there's no rush. I just need to pace myself and be kind to myself as I get back to full strength.

I'll be back on my regular posting schedule in the next several days, but I wanted to just check in and say hello. I'm planning on having a more regular posting schedule this year. I've been kinda sporadic even before I got sick, so I want to get back here to my little space on the internet and share more of myself and my photos like I used to in the early days of my blog. That will be a nice thing to get back to :-)

Well that's all for now. Have a great day wherever you are!

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Delayed New Year's Wishes

Hello!

Happy New Year!!! May 2015 bring many blessings into your life! :-)


Sidenote: I haven't been able to post because I've been very much under the weather since right after Christmas and I'm only now finally starting to feel better. I'm still not 100% but I know that all will be well soon :-)

I'll be back with a new post in the new week. I'm looking forward to getting back here.

Another sidenote: Being sick makes you appreciate your health SO MUCH!!! ;-)

Have a great weekend!