Translation for your convience

Monday, March 20, 2023

Spring Equinox

 I was almost this old when I discovered the Spring and Fall Equinox meant daylight and night were twelve hours each. Walking outside this morning to temperatures in the low forties, makes me wonder where am I? I'm thinking the groundhog was right and, despite the calendar saying spring, winter is till throwing cold at us.

Actually, I know where I am and, starting tomorrow, the temps will head back into the hot eighties. Sometimes, I'm tempted to move to a place that stays upper seventies to lower eighties. That's the perfect temperature. I can take the heat, but these cold nights and days are unbearable.

Anyway, welcome to spring, chicks, rabbits, lambs, and the coming of spring showers bringing May flowers. Although, my azaleas have already bloomed. As did my Jewel Orchid.









I hope these flowers brighten your day as much a they did/do mine. Time to clean up some leaves. Our live oak trees fall several times of the year, not just in the fall.

Writings in the works:

Still working on the final edit of, Destiny Revealed (Possibly, The Blue Rose). We're at the end of Chapter 2. 

Emily's Story, about a ten year old girl ghost and a house flipper.

I am Weather, a poem about the various aspects of weather.

Keep writing and editing. I know you can do it. See you again, soon.

Wednesday, March 15, 2023

Not to Use a Cliche

But, time does fly. I've been very busy with our daughter and her difficult pregnancy. And a few days of substitute teaching. 

Baby came last week, so I've been busy helping her recover from her C-section. We're having a quiet moment, so I thought I'd update you.

I did some research, but still haven't done anything toward my New Year's Resolutions. I'm still psyched about doing them, but I do see they are on a back burner rather than up front.

We had our first show for our WoodnStuff Workshop last month and I spent a couple of weeks getting our products finished, inventoried, and priced. We did okay at the show. So much better than the flea market we were attending November and December.

This surprised me as, pre-covid, I did very well at this flea market. When they reopened, they had moved it to the back and there were a lot less regulars than previously. I sold less than $20 worth of product in those two months and I spent $40 a week. Since our daughter's pregnancy was getting more difficult and the fact we did poorly, we decided to leave the market and work on finding craft/art shows to attend.

I'll be updating some of the wood working products in our WoodnStuff Workshop blog. I'll put a link to the blog when it's finished.

Continuing my quest to finish the edit of my science fiction book, Destiny Revealed (maybe The Blue Rose), I am once again making sure all the i's are dotted and the t's crossed. My team and I are almost done with chapter 2 of 38.

What brought this about was the desire to enter the first chapter in a First Chapter contest. After making sure it was the way I wanted, I went to the site and read the rules. Turns out it didn't qualify because it won 3rd place in a previous contest years ago. And, even though it was different from the first version, they clearly stated if previous editions of the same chapter had won any contests, it could not be entered even if this one was different from the original. I decided to continue with the editing and get this book published. 

I've also reread and am working on the second book. It's outline is complete and many parts are fleshed out. I believe it's ready to go from the handwritten state to the writing program. I hope this one doesn't take me 12 plus years to publish.

I believe this updates the author portion of my life. Keep writing, dreaming, and moving forward.

Tuesday, January 31, 2023

New Years Resolution

 I'm not one to make New Year's Resolutions. Life gets in the way. I did download "Writer's Digest presents A Year of Writing Prompts 365". There is no way this book is going to last a year. I am an extremely slow writer that usually requires a lot of research. Stories do not roll off the tip of my pen. So, this book is going to last many years and yes, all my writing starts out on paper.

The prompt for January 1 is as follows: From your New Year's Resolution(s), take one and create a fictional story around it. Since I don't make resolutions, I went to Google and found Top New Year's Resolutions, Unique New Year's Resolutions, and Crazy/Odd New Year's Resolutions. I made this list:

1) Exercise more to feel good

2) Get organized and clear out the clutter

3) Lose weight

4) Get photo taken in 5 interesting places

5) Make a new friend a month

6) Write down one thing your grateful for every night

7) Start a new hobby

8) Pay it forward

9) Stop multitasking

10) Volunteer

I really liked numbers 4 and 10 and decided to do both.  Justserve.org gave me some great volunteering opportunities. Here are the 5 I choose:

1) Do a clean-up using TheLittleCleanup app

2) Start a Little Free Library

3) Take photos of gravestones for Billiongraves 

4) Sew a My Very Own Blanket 

5)  Volunteer at Inspire Equine Assisted Center

 Follow along my writing journey and, if you're up to the challenge, write along. I'm thinking the title for this story will be, "New Year, New Me." You may finish your story sooner, but know I'm clubbing along.

The prompt for January 2nd is: "That's not a New Year's Resolution. That's a death wish." Use this as a first line and run with it! Nothing comes to mind for this one. Depending on how long the first prompt takes, this one may not see the light of day this year.

"You can’t wait for inspiration. You have to go after it with a club."

Friday, October 26, 2018

An Odd Reminder of a Biblical Story

Wow, can't believe it's been so long since my last post. We sold our home in South Florida, spent almost two months in hotels as we searched, and then waited, for our new home in Central Florida. I'm now somewhat settled and getting back into writing.

I went outside and our Snake Lily (more info about this plant to follow) had collapsed. This scripture passage came to mind:

Jonah 4:6-11 King James Version (KJV)




6 And the Lord God prepared a gourd, and made it to come up over Jonah, that it might be a shadow over his head, to deliver him from his grief. So Jonah was exceeding glad of the gourd.







7 But God prepared a worm when the morning rose the next day, and it smote the gourd that it withered.


8 And it came to pass, when the sun did arise, that God prepared a vehement east wind; and the sun beat upon the head of Jonah, that he fainted, and wished in himself to die, and said, It is better for me to die than to live.
9 And God said to Jonah, Doest thou well to be angry for the gourd? And he said, I do well to be angry, even unto death.
10 Then said the Lord, Thou hast had pity on the gourd, for the which thou hast not laboured, neither madest it grow; which came up in a night, and perished in a night:
11 And should not I spare Nineveh, that great city, wherein are more than sixscore thousand persons that cannot discern between their right hand and their left hand; and also much cattle?


So, what happened to my Snake Lily? One day it was standing and the next, it was on the ground.


Snake Lily, Voodoo Lily, Devil's tongue, dragon plant, elephant yam, konnyku, leopard arum, snake palm, umbrella arum. (Amorphophallus konjac, A. rivieri, A rivieri var. konjac, A. mairei, and Hydrosme rivieri) The Snake Lily is a member of the philodendron family (Araceae) (I love philodendrons and hope one day to have a porch/house full.


Each starchy tuber produces one leaf stalk that divides into three sections in an umbrella-like formation. The tuber can be as large as a foot in diameter and up to 50 pounds. As the leaf grows, the tuber shrinks, then spends the remainder of the growing season becoming larger than before the new growth. The petiole (stalk) is olive green mottled with a pinkish-gray color.


Plants eventually grow four to six feet tall with a four foot span. This plant goes dormant in late summer/early fall. (Thus the Jonah gourd effect)

Once the tuber reaches about grapefruit or larger size, it may produce a flower (of sorts-inflorescence). It's shiny brown-purple to maroon in color and can grow up to three feet. When blooming, it attracts carrion flies (it's natural pollinator) by giving off an odor similar to a dead animal.

I have several growing in various areas in my gardens. All of which were not planted by the previous owner nor myself. I love the different and am extremely happy this plant chose to pop up in my gardens. I did dig up one to add to the turtle pond decor. We'll see how it does this winter in a pot. I think it adds a nice look to the pond and hope it does well.  
                                                

It's still adjusting to the transplanting or getting ready to go dormant. Follow this blog, or FB (for both this plant and for the turtle pond build) and you can keep up with how well it adjusts to being in a pot rather than in the garden. 

Other places you can find me on the web: My FaceBook pages Dennise Sleeper, author, Ten Little Gator Eggs, Botanical Aquaponics, Second Chances: Blue Rose, The Eclectic Collection, and my YouTube Channel. Friend/follow and subscribe if you want to keep up with the eclectiveness of my life.


Reading:


Recently finished:
 
In a Texas Minute by Stella Bagwell



"Do one thing everyday that scares you." Anonymous

Wednesday, April 4, 2018

How Can I Find More Time to Write?

 This was written Thursday evening for Friday posting, but the chest pain didn't ease. An update will follow. In the meantime, let me know how you find your writing time.

A great question? An indicator? An assumption? Does time = production?

Gabriela Pereira, Jacquelyn Mitchard, authors of diyMFA, remind us we all have the same 24 hours in a day and production is based on choice not based on time.

For me, writing is extremely difficult and rather than stare at a blank page, I find something else 'more important' to fill my planned writing time. Yes, I'd rather clean house, scrub the floor on my hands and knees, fold laundry, and do the dishes than write.

I wanted to better my writing experience, so I joined the diyMFABook Club. And prompt #9 started me on a great path. The "diyMFA" goal sheet is a great addition to my writing. No avoiding blank pages. 😀 It has helped me see each small goal reached. And each small goal gets me closer to my Top Priority Goal: Pubishing "Blue Rose." Have you seen my latest FaceBook post toward my publishing goal? If not, check it out.

Ready to make the choice with me?

Let's write.

Sometimes life gets in the way as I reminded you in Prompt #9 Part 4. Today is what I call a 'bad chest day.' Today my chest is killing me and making it difficult for me to work. A couple of days ago I decided to put this pain aside and write, no matter what. (The pain has been with me since November 2016 and it hasn't been long enough since the surgery to know if the removal of the cyst solves the pain) So today I decided to honor my reality as discused in Prompt #2.


Did I tell you I'm thrilled to no end that I decided to join the diyMFABook Club? You can too. It's never too late. This can be done at any time in your writing career but should be done ASAP to keep you from making many of the common mistakes. Want to join 500+ authors on Facebook as we 'Word Nerds Unite' and participate in this challenge? It's never too late. Even after the fact. Click here.  While you're here, check out the live, and not so live, broadcasts.

On your way, please stop by and friend my FaceBook pages Ten Little Gator Eggs, Botanical Aquaponics and Second Chances: Blue Rose


Reading:

Truth Spell, The TruthSeer Archives Book 2 by Mike Shelton
diyMFA by Gabriela Pereira, Jacquelyn Mitchard
Time and Again by Jack Finney


Recently finished:
TruthStone, The TruthSeer Archives Book 1 by Mike Shelton
Strike by D.J. MacHale (this series holds a special place in my heart. The character Tori Sleeper is my daughter.)
 Storm by D.J. MacHale (this series holds a special place in my heart. The character Tori Sleeper is my daughter.)
Sylo by D.J. MacHale (this series holds a special place in my heart. The character Tori Sleeper is my daughter.)
Dark Witch by Nora Roberts

Tuesday, March 27, 2018

diyMFA Book Club, Prompt #9: Try a New Technique, Part 4

This was the second week and I thought I failed. Read on and you'll see that I was wrong. Not so much as stuff got in the way, but life got in the way. See my blog post, Prompt # 2 diyMFABook Club. I knew it was coming and had adjusted the goal sheet to accommodate my expected surgery. I thought I'd made adjustments that considered problems, etc. This is where I failed.

My plan for last week was Monday's update. (That was accomplished) But that was the end of that. My INR (blood clotting indicator) came back high (5.9)  in my pre-op bloodwork. A lot happened at once. My biggest worry? My surgery, the surgery I've been needing, wanting, waiting for, since November 2016 was on the chopping block. I had to go in Tuesday for repeat testing. (they couldn't find the order and I was there for what seemed like forever, as they tried to find it or get another.)

After my bloodwork, I had a gastroenterology appointment. The next step in regaining my heath and understanding the changes that are going on in my body. (I was a healthy person until October 2016. Haven't been since)  The doctor requested two tests, an MRI of my abdomen with and without contrast triple phase and a PIPIDA Nuclear Scan with Gallbladder Ejection Fraction (also known as a HIDA Scan). A week later, I'm still waiting for these to be scheduled. (update: both are scheduled next week)

I came home, distraught the pain in my chest was possibly not getting fixed that week and what was I going to do. I'd been suffering from it for so long and losing the chance to eliminate the pain was more than I could handle. I curled up with a book, TruthStone by Mike Shelton and waited. for the results.

Tuesday evening, they called and said the results were safe enough to do the surgery, so it was done. Still, don't know the second results. But that's of no concern. I was looking forward to my needed surgery. The surgery on the other hand...

Pre-op went great. Somewhere between the prep room and the surgical room I was out. I woke from the surgery in great pain. Pain the pain pills didn't help with once their concoction wore off. I couldn't move without extreme pain and as time continued it became difficult to breathe, talk, and eat. I stopped eating and talked as little as possible. Breathing was shallow and worried me because I had pneumonia twice in the past. (Been coughing since removal of the tube, but lungs are clear. [I know this because yesterday I went to the ER, on recommendation of the nurse, based on symptoms])

They tried to get me out of bed, but it was so painful I had to immediately return to the bed. I even tried to use the bathroom during the night. (I was hoping I would be better since it had been more than 12 hours since the surgery) No go. The pain was too much. (I hate using the bedpan)

Thursday morning they talked about sending me home. I told them I refused to go home until they could stop the pain.  When the doctor came by, he said the pain could be from the drainage tube and that would be removed later in the day.

Thursday afternoon, they removed the tube and it was like night and day. I could breathe, move around, and use the bathroom. I was happy to go home. I was tender, but pain meds worked. (Big smile to no pain)

The cyst was not what the doctor expected and he warned me the removal may not end my chest pain as expected. It's too soon to determine. But, pain meds in the past didn't help and right now, they're helping. I have an appointment next week and expect to find out its cancer status. (always have to worry about this as cancer and heart disease are my genectic nemesis)

I did not fail #9 as I first thought. I was able to Write with Focus, Read with Purpose, and Build my Community. I may not have hit specific goals but I did hit each category. I missed the Top Priority goal: Publish Blue Rose. I didn't touch the manuscript last week. My goal this week is to resume Prompt #9 and get back on track. To fight for my reality and push all interference away. Setting goals now, despite the? Pain. Discomfort. Confusion. Desire for normalacy. (normalacy of a 20 year old? 30 year old? 50 year old? my age? Working on that)

This week I will work toward continuing Prompt #9 so I can move onto Prompt # 10 and so on. I'm eager to continue with the diyMFA bookclub, Word Nerds Unite. You can too. It's never too late. This can be done at any time in your writing career but should be done ASAP to keep you from making many of the common mistakes. Want to join 500+ authors on Facebook as we 'Word Nerds Unite' and participate in this challenge? It's never too late. Even after the fact. Click here.  While you're here, check out the live, and not so live, broadcasts.


On your way, please stop by and friend my FaceBook pages Ten Little Gator Eggs, Botanical Aquaponics and Second Chances: Blue Rose


Reading:
Truth Spell, The TruthSeer Archives Book 2 by Mike Shelton
diyMFA by Gabriela Pereira, Jacquelyn Mitchard
Time and Again by Jack Finney


Recently finished:
TruthStone, The TruthSeer Archives Book 1 by Mike Shelton
Strike by D.J. MacHale (this series holds a special place in my heart. The character Tori Sleeper is my daughter.)
 Storm by D.J. MacHale (this series holds a special place in my heart. The character Tori Sleeper is my daughter.)
Sylo by D.J. MacHale (this series holds a special place in my heart. The character Tori Sleeper is my daughter.)
Dark Witch by Nora Roberts