tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-137542102024-03-13T15:08:23.357-05:00An Eclectic Author <b>Brenda Williamson<p> Sineth Killiri<p> Griffin Merek</p></p></b> <p> ...and Friends~~~~
</p>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger839125truetag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-52519667198596997442018-05-03T12:55:00.003-05:002018-05-03T12:55:57.697-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">This past Saturday, stepping out on an extreme limb of faith, I asked my husband to once again remove the ice claw from my cane; but even more brazenly, I asked him to please put my winter boots into storage, upstairs—along with my winter coat.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">He did ask what I would do if it snowed again, and I told him the truth. We’re nearly all the way out of April. If it snows again, I’m staying inside the house—and I don’t even care if we’re out of coffee when I do it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I know that last bit has my beloved concerned; after all, that’s going below the bottom line beneath which we both, usually, we will not sink. But friends, I tell you truly, a person has to draw the line at some point and take a stand.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">That’s mine.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">We’ve had a couple of days of magnificent, fresh-smelling air in the last couple of weeks. I took the opportunity to have my front and back doors wide open to air out the house. Also, I have my bedroom window open about an inch and a half now. I’ve always slept better in a cooler bedroom, with the window open. But I’ve noticed some changes, lately. And I believe that I’m possibly on the verge of inching toward that tipping point, the one my daughter has told me about. The one where a person steps (or maybe stumbles) over the line from middle age, right into the morass of elderly status.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">My daughter, Jennifer, is what’s known here in Canada as a PSW—a Personal Support Worker. I believe, in the U.S., that career is referred to as being a Nurse’s Aid.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Now, Jennifer doesn’t tolerate the heat well. She not only visits clients in their home, but she also has clients she visits at a senior’s care facility, here in town. The rooms there, apparently, each have their own thermostats. And a lot of her clients have that sucker cranked right up, no matter the time of year it is.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">She tells me that there are days when she comes out of a client’s room and has to take a moment to allow her body temperature to come back down to normal while she uses a tissue to mop the sweat from her brow. She shakes her head as she tells me, that sometimes, even in those environments, those poor people will complain of being cold.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I am beginning to understand that concept.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">My internal thermostat has been off since I hit menopause, a while back. In the middle of the day—any day—I will either feel icy cold or very hot. Part of the cold, I understand, has to do with poorer circulation. That is especially true in my right foot—because of the veins they took out of my right leg during my emergency heart by-pass surgery in 2002.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">My office is cooler than the rest of the house, and my feet can get very chilly, even though I am wearing socks and leg warmers and slippers. Later in the day, when I am “legs up” in my recliner, with a blanket covering those legs, from my knees to my ankles, I sometimes have the same problem.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I solved that dilemma about a month and a half ago. While in Walmart, I purchased an inexpensive fleece blanket, the small kind meant for sitting with, not for beds. I folded it in half lengthwise, and sewed it shut across the bottom and about a foot and a half up the side.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Mostly—when I’m in my recliner—I slip my legs (minus my slippers) into this hand-made “cubby-hole” for my feet, get those legs up, and cover myself as previously with my other fleece blanket. Within about fifteen minutes, sometimes sooner, my ankles and feet are toasty warm and I am a happy woman.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">One other dilemma has no solution. Sometimes my knees will ache like a bad tooth-ache. So, I put my heating pad on them, and that begins to ease the discomfort. That wonderful device can also, unfortunately, trigger a hot flash.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">My husband suggested, and yes, with a straight face at least until the words were out of his mouth, that on such occasions I apply an ice pack to my head. He said, that way, I could be a real earth mother: my knees would represent the tropics, my head with the ice pack, the north pole, and the rest of me, the temperate zone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">A sense of humor is a wonderful thing. But I digress.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Just like those dear souls my daughter cares for, I, too, have taken, from time-to-time, to raising the thermostat in the house. Most of the time, over the winter months, it’s set at seventy degrees. Last year, that was sufficient for all but a handful of days.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">This past winter, however, and even as recently as last Sunday night, we dared to be wastrels, spendthrifts throwing away heating dollars as if they were so much flotsam and jetsam on the sea of life.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Yes, I think we’re making that leaving-middle age transition, because we dared to raise the setting on our thermostat from seventy degrees all the way up to seventy-two.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">If you tell me that proves it, and it’s all downhill from here, I’m going to pretend I don’t hear you.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Love,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Morgan</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="font-family: Verdana; line-height: 1.22em;" target="_blank">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="font-family: Verdana; line-height: 1.22em;" target="_blank">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-5348693839988474152018-05-01T06:05:00.001-05:002018-05-01T06:05:45.001-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">There’s been a lot of talk, lately, about history. As in, “when history looks back on these times, <i style="line-height: 1.22em;">they</i> won’t be looked upon kindly”. Or, my personal favorite, “<i style="line-height: 1.22em;">They’re</i> on the wrong side of history!” “They” of course, being whomever, depending upon and according to the speaker of the moment, is considered “in the wrong”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I think it’s good to keep history in mind as we live our lives. But not just the history we’re making in the moment. You see, some of the history we’re making is new. But sadly, much of it is a repetition of what has come before—actions we took that wreaked dreadful consequences upon humanity.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">History, you see, really is something you’re doomed to repeat until you learn from it.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">It was a fervent belief in eugenics and racial purity that allowed a power-hungry madman to come to power in Germany and to go on to become one of the greatest human monsters of all time. That didn’t happen centuries in the past—that was just eighty-five years ago, in 1933. Those beliefs weren’t simply beliefs that sprang into being spontaneously; they were beliefs that were coined and fed and nurtured by the madman himself. In that monster’s day, the scapegoat he chose as the reason his country was no longer great, was mainly the Jewish people. Millions of them died in this satan’s attempt to not only make his country greater, but to make himself the absolute dictator of his nation, and then of the world.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Ultimately, he failed primarily because one nation, The United States, left behind its isolationism and rose to the challenge, leading a force of allies that defeated him. And from the moment that war was won, wise souls began to caution us all that these freedoms that our courageous fighting forces had secured for us were <i style="line-height: 1.22em;">not</i> guaranteed; we needed, all of us, to stand guard over them, and keep vigil upon them, lest they be subverted once more.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em; word-spacing: normal;">We needed to remember, </span><i style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em; word-spacing: normal;">lest we forgot. </i><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em; word-spacing: normal;">Sadly, it would appear that we’ve forgotten.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Our basic human nature lies at the bottom of our susceptibility to being led astray. Times get tough, things change, we feel insecure, and because of our human nature, we seek to <i style="line-height: 1.22em;">blame</i> someone or something for our woes. We didn’t do this to ourselves, so someone must have done this horrible thing to us! And that very aspect of our nature gives an opening to the snake oil salesmen of the world to slither in and wreak their havoc, to wallow in their chaos and to generally make a mess of everything. But all that havoc being wreaked upon us has nothing to do with bettering our state of being; it’s all about the despot of the moment and his fortunes and his whims.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Down through the ages, times have gotten tough and things have changed. It’s not someone doing something to us, it’s cyclical. The answer, the way to cope, is <i style="line-height: 1.22em;">not</i> to cast aspersions and strike out at whoever appears to be a convenient target; it’s not to blame others, and shout to the world with a raised, shaking fist that all would be fine if only <i style="line-height: 1.22em;">they</i> would just go away. Whenever we’ve done that, which I liken to throwing a kind of “grown up spoiled-child hissy fit”, the cosmos sees to it we get a “time out”. And that time out is rarely pleasant.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">The better way to respond when times get tough and things change is to support each other and to adapt and adjust to the new paradigm. The adoption of the can-do spirit that led to the boom times that followed the end of the Second World War is a prime example of that sort of response. In my mind and in my heart, I know that’s the only way to answer these kinds of difficulties.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">In nature, species that do <i style="line-height: 1.22em;">not</i> adapt and adjust to changes, die out. That’s what survival of the fittest means, and it’s not a political tenet, it’s nature’s way of protecting life, all life. Only the strongest, the most viable, and the most adaptable organisms are allowed to go forward.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">They adapt, and they adjust and they, to totally mix my metaphors, make lemonade out of lemons instead of trying to rid their environment of “<i style="line-height: 1.22em;">the others</i>”.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">We have to learn to do that again. We have to learn to recognize when we’re being sold a bill of goods that is nothing but horse pucky. We have to remember that the freedoms we cherish are not absolutes, they are not forever. They, like the most delicate of orchids, require care, and attention, and work. We have to remember that we were created not to rule this planet, or to live in isolation, but to help one another.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I have great hope for our future, because I do believe that most people are good—if, perhaps, a little too trusting of those smooth-talking snake oil salesmen.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="font-family: Verdana; line-height: 1.22em;" target="_blank">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="font-family: Verdana; line-height: 1.22em;" target="_blank">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-43007751619892807612018-02-09T06:43:00.001-06:002018-02-09T06:43:42.647-06:00Bye Bye Glados - Portal Episode 4<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/uyKjqQfzA7M" width="480"></iframe>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-87520317652433344822018-02-06T06:33:00.001-06:002018-02-06T06:33:08.509-06:00Minecraft Project Ozone Lite Ep 3 Rainbow Beacon!<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="270" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Qssk4Sl_tyY" width="480"></iframe>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-88286040514277903272017-09-27T12:48:00.003-05:002017-09-27T12:48:37.680-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Autumn has arrived. We’ve attacked the fallen walnut leaves for the third time, and will likely have to do so again before the neighborhood maples drop their leaves around the end of October.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">When it was me doing most of the raking, I always figured that since I had enjoyed the beauty of those neighboring trees through the spring and summer, spending a couple hours raking was a fair price to pay.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I no longer do that chore.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">When our grandson isn’t on the job, my beloved is. But please don’t feel too sorry for him. You see, at a company golf tournament a couple of years ago, he won a leaf blower. So, while there is some effort involved, it’s not the heavy slog of raking—at least not until he has amassed a pile. Then he puts nature’s debris into the brown paper bags, and that can take some work. The only thing he really minds about the entire process is that he can’t do physical work like he used to.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">The countdown to his retirement is in serious territory now—less than two months to go. I will admit that I am at this point used to the idea (or should that be resigned to the idea?). We’ve joked some, and I’ve told him that if I ever tell him to go outside and not come in until the streetlights are on, that he should perhaps stop and examine his recent activities.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">He thought that I’d made a very clever joke—but he also knew I meant it. This is going to be an adjustment for the both of us. But then, we’ve been together more than 45 years, and through that time we’ve undergone plenty of adjustments. We’re not in the U.S. army but we’ve used their motto—adapt, improvise, overcome—for most of our lives.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">There’s an old saying that the only people who really like change are wet babies, and I think there’s some truth to that.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">He is looking forward to not having to get up at four a.m., to not having a boss, and to not having to interact with people he doesn’t necessarily like. It’s been slightly more than fifteen years since I last worked outside the home. I spent much of my working years employed by big companies, so I do understand his feelings on the matter.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I even know, although we’ve spent some time negotiating responsibilities around the home and the upcoming division of labor, that he’s likely going to take the first few weeks and do as little as possible. I really am all for that. If retirement is supposed to be a reward, then he should be allowed to feel as if he’s being rewarded.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">You know how, as a parent, you live your life a certain way and hope that your example inspires your kids? Yeah, I don’t think that works the same way with spouses. David and I are two totally different people. It’s rare for me to blow off a day. I might not get everything done I think I need to do, because I can’t do physical work the way I used to, either. But I rarely spend more than an hour or so “doing nothing”. The only codicil to that is when I am captured by a good book.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">My daily routine is what I call “multi-tasking”. Every hour of every day is filled with either writing, or housework. There are always things to be done. Dishes that missed the after-supper round up the night before, a bathroom to be cleaned, a floor to be vacuumed, and a bed to be made. Supper also has to be made, unless it’s Friday or Saturday—yes, I now have not one, but two “no-cook” days. As I said, I may not get everything done on any given day, but I work on it as best I can. I’ve learned that an hour or so taken with my legs up in the early afternoon generally eases the pain of my arthritic joints so I don’t need pain meds until evening.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I keep busy so that by the time I head to bed, I’m tired, and I can sleep. Rare is the day that drags, and I guess in a way I’ve traded the right to loaf around for a lack of boredom.</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><br style="line-height: 1.22em;" /></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">I’m honestly looking forward to finding out what my husband’s after-retirement routine, once he settles in, is going to look like.</span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: blue; cursor: pointer; font-family: Verdana; line-height: 1.22em;" target="_blank">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="line-height: 1.22em;"></span></div>
<div class="aolmail_MsoNormal" style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 13px; line-height: 1.22em; margin-bottom: 1em;">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 1.22em;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="noopener noreferrer" style="color: blue; cursor: pointer; font-family: Verdana; line-height: 1.22em;" target="_blank">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-86070304398123193462017-08-30T08:19:00.001-05:002017-08-30T08:19:02.978-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div id="ygrp-text">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The pictures coming out of
Texas beginning last weekend, and over the past few days have been
heartbreaking. To see some small towns practically demolished, and the streets
of Houston with waist to chest deep water—and rising—is beyond shocking. Entire
neighborhoods will have to be leveled, I think. You can’t have homes submerged
for so long a period in so much contaminated water, and hope they’ll dry out and
be fine. You just can’t.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The disaster that was
Hurricane, and now Tropical Storm Harvey truly is unlike any storm we’ve ever
seen. Usually a hurricane comes, rages for a day or so, and then goes away. The
cost in human lives can be counted almost immediately. When I awoke this
morning, it was to news that the death toll had reached 18, doubling overnight.
The authorities fear that number will climb, once the water drains away.
Hurricane Katrina stole 1,836 lives. We can only pray that is a number never to
be matched or exceeded.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In addition to the deaths,
thousands of people have and are going through hell. Thousands have escaped with
their lives, but have lost everything they possess, save the clothes on their
backs. Some arrived at the shelters, shoeless. For the person experiencing it,
losing everything is more than a shock, it’s a violation—very similar to the
kind of violation one would feel after a physical attack. It’s happened to us
twice, through fire, so I know a little of what these people are
feeling.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Houston police chief, Art
Acevedo said during the telephone interview that I listened to Monday morning,
that he feared the worst was yet to come, and his words have proven true. All of
the water brought by the rainfall and flooding in south east Texas will head to
the Gulf via Houston. There are over 6 million people in the metropolitan
Houston area, a number far too high to have tried to evacuate, given the
propensity for flash flooding on many of the roadways leading out of the area. A
family of 6 was lost, having perished attempting to evacuate their flooded
home.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The Army Corps of Engineers had
to release water from two Houston dams into the Buffalo Bayou on Monday morning.
This was done to prevent uncontrollable flooding of the Houston Metropolitan
area, and to keep the dams from failing. It was a measure taken much sooner than
originally planned, because the water in the reservoirs rose so quickly. Some
people were not yet flooded until the gates of the reservoirs were opened. And
even so, one of those dams, built in the 1930s, still breached it’s banks,
spilling water into areas that had previously escaped flooding.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">A category 4 Hurricane with no
“steering currents” gathering last minute strength from the unusually warm
waters of the Gulf of Mexico, coming ashore and lingering, wreaking havoc and
with the potential for unprecedented rainfall—well, there was simply no real
play book to follow for this crisis. They are writing the book for this one as
they go along. Another blessing? There was no storm surge in the Houston
area.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is going to be a very long
recovery for the people of south east Texas, and especially, it would seem, for
the people of Houston. The storm has moved on but the water will continue to
bring heartache until it eventually drains away. What the water hid will then be
revealed and the true recovery can begin. Only six days of Harvey, but the
rebuilding, the mending of lives, and of spirits, the reconstruction of
neighborhoods—that is going to take years.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The one bright light throughout
this disaster has been watching neighbors helping neighbors, and strangers
helping strangers. People came from far and wide, brought their own boats, and
just got to work. Much has been written about the great divide within the United
States these days; and yet I am certain no one offering help inquired if the
person in need of that help was a democrat or a republican. They didn’t care
what color their skin was, or if they might be an immigrant or native born. In
the midst of the chaos named Harvey, all those people were Texans, and they were
Americans—they were brothers and sisters. And while this tragedy has been hard
to watch, and clearly even harder to endure, the affirmation of the greatest of
the values for which America stands, has been something we all needed to see—and
more, something we all need to emulate.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There are ways we all can help
the people devastated by Harvey. Canadians can donate money through the Canadian
Red Cross. Here is a link to the designated page on their website: <a href="http://www.redcross.ca/about-us/red-cross-stories/2017/red-cross-responds-to-devastation-caused-by-hurricane-harvey" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.redcross.ca/about-us/red-cross-stories/2017/red-cross-responds-to-devastation-caused-by-hurricane-harvey">http://www.redcross.ca/about-us/red-cross-stories/2017/red-cross-responds-to-devastation-caused-by-hurricane-harvey</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The American Red Cross is, of
course, involved in providing assistance. In addition, here is a list I found of
resources in need of various donations, for my American friends who want to
help: <a href="https://www.yahoo.com/news/help-victims-tropical-storm-harvey-212340221.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="https://www.yahoo.com/news/help-victims-tropical-storm-harvey-212340221.html">https://www.yahoo.com/news/help-victims-tropical-storm-harvey-212340221.html</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You don’t have to give a lot;
you might think your five dollars won’t help, but it will. Your five dollars
added to the five dollars of thousands of other people means thousands of
dollars times five will flow and be used to help put people’s lives back
together again.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In the meantime, let’s all send
positive thoughts and prayers for the people affected by this disaster. The
people of Texas are resilient. They will get through this, and come out
stronger. I truly believe this to be so.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
<br class="yui-cursor" />
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-57053769492299628352017-08-16T09:24:00.000-05:002017-08-17T09:24:56.273-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I cannot remain silent. To
witness such grotesque injustice, and say nothing, is to agree with it. This
past weekend I watched thugs marching in the streets of Charlottesville,
Virginia, spewing hate and Nazi slogans, giving Nazi salutes. That is completely
intolerable, completely and unequivocally wrong. I know my history. The United
States of America as well as my own country of Canada went to war, not even a
century ago, against the evil of Nazism. One cannot claim to be a patriotic
American or a patriotic Canadian and be a Nazi.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You just can’t. It is not
physically, emotionally, or morally possible.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Looking at the bigger picture,
I have to ask myself, why do human beings hate?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Why do we allow ourselves to
feel the roiling, boiling cauldron of emotions that leave us full of anger, full
of rage? Full of hate? Those feelings don’t make us feel good. They don’t
create, they don’t uplift, they don’t enhance. Nothing good comes from those
emotions. So why do we allow them purchase within our souls, and within our
society?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Of all the things we, as a
species, permit in our lives, the one I don’t understand is this pervasive,
black, crippling hate, the likes of which we all saw on our television screens
over this past weekend. I can’t understand it. Am I hopelessly naïve? Oh, more
than likely.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So, what makes people
hate?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ll tell you one thing, I
don’t as a rule proselytize in my essays. And I won’t over much, this time,
either. But I will say this: I have read the Bible. I state that because I have
also heard some of these haters saying they believe in God, and I do not doubt
that they do: after all, Satan believes in God, too.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I am a Christian, and hate has
no place in my faith. That isn’t my opinion, it’s fact. There is no hate in that
Good Book. Jesus did go into the temple with a whip which He made in response to
seeing God’s House turned into a ‘den of thieves’. That was anger—righteous
anger. That was not hate.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Hate is not the emotion used by
God. Hate is the tool of Satan.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So again I ask, why
hate? </span><span style="font-size: 12pt; word-spacing: normal;">There is
absolutely no positive to be gained through hate. See, I told you I was naïve.
The only gain these haters are interested in is power. They hope to overthrow
democracy, and take over, and “purify” their nation. Their words, not mine. It
appears lots of people agree with them. Maybe those people think if there we
only white people around, life would somehow be better. More jobs. More money.
Just like the good old days!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; word-spacing: normal;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt; word-spacing: normal;">But
that’s not true, not any of it. Those people just want the power for power’s
sake. And once they get it, they may decide, hmm. All those blonde people, just
you know, being blonde. Those blondes steal our jobs, they’re the reason life is
no longer good here. We need to get rid of the blondes! If we got rid of the
blondes, life would somehow be better. More jobs. More money. Just like the good
old days!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yeah, that sounds silly, but
there is as much logic behind that as there is logic behind their stated goals
and motivations now. Those that would have power at any cost will lie to attain
it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Let me say that one sentence
again. Those that would have power at any cost will lie to attain it. And they
will use any means—stirring up fears, feeding insecurities, whatever it takes—so
that their mindless minions will believe, and will do what’s asked of them. And
those who are pathological liars just lie because they can’t help
themselves.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I believe in the right of all
people to protest. I believe in the right of all people to speak their minds,
and to have their say and to choose their own beliefs.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">However, when people go to a so
called “rally” armed with guns, knives, clubs and shields, they’re not there to
protest. They’re there to commit violence. They are there to hurt other people.
Unarmed people. Ministers, and pastors, and community volunteers. Legal
assistants.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">And if they drive their car
into a crowd of innocent, unarmed people, hoping for a high body count? Why,
then they’re terrorists.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We all have the right to
protest. We do not have the right to riot, to hurt, to maim or to
kill.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-19470054920415609282017-08-09T16:06:00.000-05:002017-08-09T16:06:42.018-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This past weekend my husband
and I tackled a long overdue job—one that we had to do upstairs. This was
supposed to be our bedroom/office area. Unfortunately, the renovations, a joint
project between my husband and our second son, were never completed after our
son died. My husband simply didn’t have the heart for it. There needs only the
finishing work to be done: drywall, and some type of finished flooring. Over the
years this space has housed bedrooms for my grandkids, and a place for my
daughter and her son when they moved in with us for a couple years.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We also use this area for
storage, and what called us up there this past weekend was the task of sorting
through the thousands of books we have stored up there—some on bookshelves, some
in boxes, and some in a very long, sturdy wooden cedar chest.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yes, my friends, I said
thousands of books. The last time my daughter counted them, there were over
4,000. These are mostly paperbacks, though there were a few hard cover books in
the lot. Some of the oldest books dating back to the 1940s and before sadly
weren’t in good condition—nor were they when they came into our
possession.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Our goal, over this past
weekend, was to separate the wheat from the chaff, basically. What books did we
really want to keep and which ones could we put in a pile to give
away?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I know. You’re all still up
there at the 4000. Seriously, I think’s closer to 5000 if you count the more
recent books, the ones that are down stairs on our 6 bookshelves. You’re
probably wondering where all those books came from.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">To preface, I will tell you
that we’ve always had books, and to top that off, we have had 2 house fires
where we lost virtually everything, including our books. My beloved pointed out
in the middle of this weekend’s sorting work, that this was indeed our third
collection.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When the kids were younger,
when we were struggling, and both of us working, each bi-weekly payday we’d give
ourselves 20 dollars a piece as our “allowance”. That total of 40 bucks was our
entire entertainment budget. And each payday, we would take ourselves to the
bookstore at the plaza in the town where we shopped. There, we would each
purchase as many books as possible with our allowance.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">At the time, I’d begun to read
romance, and became somewhat hooked on some of the monthly release lines, like
Silhouette Desire and Harlequin Loveswept, and other lines, too. Those books
were fairly inexpensive. My beloved actually liked historical romance, and he
read those long before I did. He’d also buy other action adventure
books.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When we each finished reading
our books, we’d often swap and read each other’s. As I said, that was our
entertainment. We also bought a fair number of books at garage sales. “You can
have the entire box for five bucks!” What a deal that was for us, a deal only
topped by the time we bought a four-piece living room suite for 15 dollars at a
garage sale—but that is another story.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Sorting began Saturday morning.
I know my husband was expecting a battle; I know he somehow thought that I would
want to keep a ton of those books. But that was never in my plans. Yes, there
were a few books that I’d really loved. And when I would come across those? Why,
they went into the keeper box, no question about it. By the time we called it a
day on Saturday, David had accepted I wasn’t going to cling overmuch to the
past.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I found all of my old favorites
except one; I’m going to post on my face book page about that one, because I
don’t recall the title or the author, just the plot.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My reading tastes, and yes, my
standards have changed. That’s not a slight against the two lines of books I’ve
named, not at all. Anyone who’s watched an episode of an old favorite television
series will know what I mean. Books and shows over twenty years old seem less
sophisticated when you revisit them; as they should because they reflect the
society in which they were produced, and times do change. There’s a kind of
social innocence to those pre-global terrorism days that one could almost term
halcyon.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’m grateful to the hundreds of
authors who wrote thousands of novels, tiny vehicles of escape and relief. Back
in the days before I ever believed I would be a published author, I sank into
those simple, happy stories and felt uplifted. Those hours of escape were as
good as any vacation I later took.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In the end, we kept about four
boxes worth of books, and have twenty-two boxes ready to go—hopefully to good,
grateful homes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-39917040680390691472017-08-03T21:45:00.000-05:002017-08-03T21:45:13.034-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div id="ygrp-text">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">One hundred and twelve days,
and counting.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">As the date of my husband’s
retirement draws nearer, the reality of the change we’re about to undergo begins
to press home. Sometimes, I’ve been guilty of looking at what’s about to happen
to us as we enter this brand new phase of our lives—embracing David’s
retirement—through the lens of how it will affect <i>me</i>. I’m working hard to
let that go for awhile, and concentrate instead on what this will mean for my
beloved.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Something David said the other
day really brought this need into focus for me. He said, “For the first time
since I was 16, I will not have a boss.”</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">That admission brought to mind
the very real fact that I, myself, have been without a boss since 2002. Over the
last fifteen years, I’d pretty much forgotten what a pall it can be to have a
boss. I think we can file that realization—that I’d ‘forgotten’ under the
heading, “denial is more than a river in Africa”. I spent some time over the
last few days recalling just what it was like. I figured this would be a good
way to really understand my husband’s state of mind.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In truth, over the course of my
working-outside-the-home career, I’ve had a couple of perfectly awful bosses—one
who claimed he shouldn’t be subjected to the sight of me with my cane; and one
who worked hard to try and make me quit so he could hire a former female
co-worker whom he really liked from his previous employer. That last situation
was a case of bad pheromones all the way around; he didn’t like me from first
sight, which really hurt me at the time. He found his victory when I had my
first heart attack; this company had a habit of getting rid of employees who
might need to take advantage of their “self-insured” long term
disability. <i>My</i> victory was in giving him, on that last day, a list of
books on people and leadership skills, pointing out to him that he didn’t have
any of either.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">To this day, if I think too
hard about how either of those people treated me, or of what it was like to put
up with their verbal abuse and crap attitudes for as long as I did, I feel a
little bit sick to my stomach.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’m excited for my husband to
get to that day of no boss.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">David has been at the quarry
for nearly forty years. His first boss there, the man who owned
the <i>then</i> family business, who took over for his own father—this man just
recently passed away. There was no funeral per se, just a “celebration of life”
sort of visitation, and of course we attended. This man, though sometimes
driving my beloved to curse a blue streak, was nonetheless very good to us. He
was always there if an emergency arose, and trust me, we had more than a few of
them along the way. He was the first to offer a helping hand when we lost our
house to a fire, and much later, when I had to have emergency triple-bypass
surgery.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The first two bosses David had
after that man sold his family company to a large conglomerate were good, decent
men. They were fair, and sought to make the employees under them feel as if they
mattered. In turn, they quickly discovered the men now under their supervision
would work hard in return for that respect.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">That last point leads me to
digress: why are corporate managers too stupid to understand this one salient
fact of human nature? Give an employee the sense he/she matters, let them know
their contribution is important and appreciated, treat them with respect, and
the return on that investment of time and attitude will make the corporate
bottom line swell! Doesn’t cost a damn penny, but returns thousands. I wish
they’d all get a clue.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The next two bosses David had,
however, clearly had no people or leadership skills. They completely killed
David’s love for his job. That was his largest source of personal pride, and of
the way he defined himself in the world. All that, and in the end two
exceptionally mediocre “corporate soldiers” took that away from him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The boss he has now is a good
man, but for David, once some lines have been crossed, that’s it. His current
boss worked his way up through the ranks, and so he is less arrogant than the
previous two, more understanding that a company whose product is gravel for the
construction and cement industries is really built upon the work done by the men
on the floor—and that the quality of their work is directly related to the
respect and dignity with which they are treated. In short, he has good people
and leadership skills. The men under him feel as if he truly has their best
interests at heart. I think he does, because he has argued, successfully,
against a plan the company had last year to lay employees off early. It is a
seasonal industry and some layoffs are inevitable. Of course, David’s seniority
keeps him working the longest, but he had lots of layoffs with the company over
the years, especially in the beginning. In that regard, and many others he’s
paid his dues.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Right now, he’s at that stage
where he really wants to be done. He may have more than forty years in the tank,
and only four months left to go, but human nature is what it is. These last few
months are beginning to feel like forever to him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">He’s eager for his new
beginning.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-53308920287296071492017-08-01T07:36:00.000-05:002017-08-01T07:36:04.432-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-90329014476499324912017-07-19T17:30:00.000-05:002017-07-19T17:30:00.839-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div id="ygrp-text">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What a wonderful weekend we
had! And for us, another unique way to celebrate a wedding anniversary on
Friday. It was number 45 this year—and they all said it would never
last!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">As I’d mentioned we would in my
last essay, David and I attended an author/reader event, KallypsoCon 2017, this
year held in the near-by city of Burlington, Ontario this past weekend. This is
a relatively new event in the world of book conventions, created and organized
by Kallypso Masters. Kally is a wonderful writer and an exceptional human
being.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s also a relatively small
book convention—purposefully so. This year there were eleven “featured authors”
and 100 readers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This convention will never
“grow”, because the purpose is to give the readers who attend a chance to meet
and interact with each one of the authors. It’s truly an intimate gathering
compared to those that boast more than a thousand attendees, and are organized
for the purpose of making money for the corporations that hold them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Dinner on Friday night, which
was the first official event, featured an author at all but one table. The one
table without an author had the guest speakers for Saturday evening. Then, after
dessert and before the fun and games in the next room, we participated in “speed
dating”. Controlled by a “timer”, authors (and the guest speakers) rotated so
that by the end of the session, every reader had met and spoken to each of the
authors and the guests.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">All the readers had to do was
sit and wait for their favorite author to come by. That was a fun idea, and a
great way to break the ice for everyone!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The games were another way
allow the readers to get to know the authors better. The first game called “five
fun facts”. Each author had earlier sent in to the organizer 5 facts about
themselves. We took turns pulling a “fact” from the box and reading it aloud,
and the audience had to guess which author the fact was about.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I can tell you that some of my
fellow authors have lived damned interesting lives! They’ve climbed mountains
and won dance competitions, lived in Japan for a year and a half, were on a
rodeo team, and one has even ridden a camel in the Sahara and spent the night in
a Bedouin camp!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The next game left everyone in
stitches. We were each given excerpts of someone else’s novels to read aloud
(with names omitted), and the audience of readers had to guess who the author of
the excerpt was. There was great emoting, and accompanying miming, and general
hilarious Tom Foolery all around! And laughter…lots and lots and <i>lots</i> of
laughter.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s hard to be anything but
honest when you’re surrounded by and smothered in laughter.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What a genius way to kick off
an event. What better way to make authors approachable than to have them
‘perform’ in such a friendly, relaxed atmosphere?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Saturday was filled with a
Q&A session, a book signing, and another wonderful buffet dinner. In the
evening, we had a presentation about BDSM by a couple living that lifestyle.
What impressed me most about the evening’s program was the very real bond of
love between the two. As an author, and one who has written stories featuring
this interesting relationship dynamic, it’s invaluable to get real true info
from people who really, truly know. Forget some of the books you may have read;
this was the real deal.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yes, we saw floggers and
ropes—but the lion’s share of the information was on the relationship dynamic,
itself. There is a power exchange in all relationships, whether you realize it
or not. In lifestyle relationships, that exchange, and the boundaries, and the
feelings, are constantly discussed because that is part of the deal.
Communication is key, and in that one facet, the rest of us could learn a thing
or two from them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My favorite part of the weekend
by far, of course, was meeting readers, exchanging hugs and conversation, and
being inspired by the presence of those who share with me the desire to touch
lives as we entertain.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
<br class="yui-cursor" />
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-85231467731396988182017-07-12T20:45:00.001-05:002017-07-12T20:45:46.937-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’m busy getting ready for my
one and only “author event” for 2017, which begins tomorrow. This will be the
very first event of this sort that I have ever attended in my own country! One
could even say that I’m not going to the event so much as the event is coming to
me. Well, that is, one could (and did) if one wasn’t me. I would never make such
an arrogant statement myself, unless I was employing extreme sarcasm.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Which I must confess, from time
to time, I do.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">KallypsoCon happens each year
in a different location. Next year, for example, it will be held in Utah. But
this year, it’s “KallypsoCon 2017: Canada Bound”. I’m looking forward to
becoming reacquainted with some of the authors and readers who will be there,
and also meeting new friends. There’s a definite energy to be had, spending time
with those who are involved in the same vocation as I am. I don’t know if
doctors or lawyers or teachers feel that way, when they attend events for their
professions. I don’t know if this energizing is particular to a gathering of
those involved in the creative arts. I suppose it depends on whether you look at
your occupation as a job, or a calling.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I also love hearing from
readers, because what I do for living is a particularly solitary endeavor. I
don’t have an assistant at the moment, and while I do have some wonderful
reader/friends who help me out with my reader’s group and with beta-reading my
books, I tend not to “fish” for ideas or suggestions. My stories
are <i>my</i> stories, products of my imagination, and so the tough stuff—coming
up with the ideas, the plot twists, etc—that’s my <i>responsibility</i>. I’ve
always believed that if I want people to plunk down their hard-earned money to
buy one of my books, then I best be doing all the work and taking all the care
involved in its creation.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I have participated in
brainstorming sessions once or twice in the past, and I’ve found them very
stimulating. Such encounters between writers is never one-sided, and as an
author, I’ve given suggestions as well as received them. That’s a sort of
authorly quid-pro-quo, and really, part of the professional process as far as
I’m concerned.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What I don’t want to do, ever,
is indulge in what I call “writing by committee”. I understand the motivation of
those who do, and if that works for them, then more power to them. Some writers
set themselves some really tough deadlines, where they have to produce new work
on an accelerated schedule. The only way to do that is to have someone—or
several people—taking over after the first draft has been etched, editing and
polishing and getting it ready to send off. I’m not talking about editing here,
which most of us experience; I’m talking about other people who take the
author’s first draft, and produce the second. Now, I’m not knocking that process
at all. Each of us has our own process, and to write in any way that ignores our
intrinsic instincts and inner process is to betray the craft for which we
breathe.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’m pretty good at writing, at
coming up with characters and crafting a tale about them. My writing speed has
slowed some over the last couple of years, but I do the best I can. What I don’t
excel at, what I’m not really very good at, is promotion. By nature, I’m a shy
woman. If you’ve met me, you may dispute that. The truth is
I’ve <i>learned</i> to be outgoing, but it takes a lot out of me. I would go to
large conventions in the past, where I would meet hundreds of people, and stand
in a room and “pimp” all the authors who were contracted with my publisher. I
was delighted to do that, to give back to a company that took a chance on me.
However, when I would return home, I’d be a wreck, energy-wise, for at least a
week. To recover, I needed quiet, and I needed to just be me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So, since I do suck so badly at
promotion I’ve had to begin to think of that necessary activity in a different
way. I’ve begun to think of it as <i>socializing</i>. I’m not touting my work,
so much as I am taking a break from it to meet people who happen to like reading
the same kind of books as I happen to write. I could never be cut-throat in my
approach, either. I see other authors—in this case, the wonderful authors who
will be appearing at this same event—as colleagues, not as
competition.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I honestly believe there’s room
enough for us all to succeed and to prosper. A few of these authors—Kallypso
Masters (<a href="http://kallypsomasters.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://kallypsomasters.com/">http://kallypsomasters.com</a> ) Lexi Blake ( <a href="http://www.lexiblake.net/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.lexiblake.net/">http://www.lexiblake.net</a>), and Cherise Sinclair (<a href="http://cherisesinclair.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://cherisesinclair.com/">http://cherisesinclair.com</a> ) I’ve read and truly
enjoyed. They have different styles, but share a talent and a bent for turning
out wonderful, character-driven, page-turning books. The rest of the authors
appearing, I’m sure I will read in the weeks and months to come. I’m always
looking for new-to-me-authors to read.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is a short event, from
Thursday to Sunday, and within 40 minutes of home. I’m looking forward to being
energized, and making new friends.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-51104679231246481142017-07-05T08:24:00.000-05:002017-07-05T08:24:15.308-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Today would have been my
mother’s 98<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span> birthday, and my
son, Anthony’s, 40<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Anthony was born after my
mother passed away. Actually, he was born the very next year. We commemorated
the one-year anniversary of Mom’s death in April, and then he arrived, three
months later, on her birthday. We have “Christmas in July” in this family,
because my brother’s birthday is on the 1<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">st</span>, my mother’s, and then Anthony’s on
the 5<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span>, my daughter’s on the
13<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span>, our wedding anniversary on
the 14<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span> and my birthday is on the
21<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">st</span>. July is a very busy month in
the Ashbury household.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">July is also the month we lost
Anthony, on the 30<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span>, in 2006.
That makes this an emotional month, as well as a busy one. It’s no wonder that
the beginning of July always gives a bigger meaning to the start of summer for
me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There can be no doubt that
summer has indeed arrived. The temperatures are rising and the days are long.
This is the last summer before my beloved retires. Originally—that is, after his
last vacation time over Christmas—he’d said he didn’t want to take any vacation,
since it would be his last year, and he would in fact be on vacation from
November onward into infinity. That resolve didn’t last very long at all. He
went back to work after the Christmas break the first week of January, and by
the second week of January he was looking for a good excuse to take a week
off. I have one “author event” this year, very close to home. I’ll be at
KallypsoCon 2017 in Burlington, Ontario from July 13 – 16. That’s “just down the
road” from us. David has booked that time off work, and he’ll be serving as my
“assistant” during this author/reader convention. What does my assistant do, you
may ask?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Well in this case, he becomes
my “go to” man for whatever I may need, and also wherever I may need to go by
being the power behind my wheelchair, if I need it. I can walk. I use a cane,
but I am able to walk—but not for long distances or extended periods of time.
Usually, when I attend conventions, I rent a scooter. However, I couldn’t see
taking on the expense of one this time when we’re driving just down the road, in
our own car, and I have the wheelchair in the trunk of my car,
anyway.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There was a time when I would
have abhorred using the device, as I know my mother did. That phase of my
life—that martyrdom phase—has passed, thankfully. I walk as much as I can, and
ask for help when I can’t. Asking for help has been one of the hardest things
for me to learn how to do. Give help? No problem, I’m happy to. You need
something? I am there, baby. Ah, but ask for help? Not so easy for
me.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It wasn’t until I looked on
that trait as a kind of unattractive pride that I began to change. I’m still not
quite there, and my first instinct is to extend a hand rather than take one, but
I am, after all, a work in progress.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’m looking forward to this
event, because I haven’t attended a convention for a few years now. I love
meeting readers. They’re my focus, and while sometimes I may be a bit late
answering the e-mails I receive from them, I do answer every single one. There
might come a day when I can’t do that. But for now, I want my readers to feel
free to email me, or send me a pm on Face Book. I will respond!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve never attended this event
before; it’s a fairly new one as conventions go, but wildly successful, usually
selling out very quickly. The organizer, Kallypso Masters, (<a href="http://kallypsomasters.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://kallypsomasters.com/">http://kallypsomasters.com</a> ) is an author I’ve
met and admired, a woman who is as warm and genuine as they come. She writes
military romance and BDSM and possesses both talent and skill in generous
proportions. Her stories are all page turners and definitely worth
reading.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This convention is different in
that there are limited numbers of authors, and readers. 11 authors, 130 readers,
which allows for plenty of good, honest, interaction. I’ve been told that this
is a stellar promotional opportunity. I know it is, but I suck at promo—at least
what some people interpret as promo.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In my professional life, as far
as I’m concerned, there are two things—writing, and readers. I love writing. I
love interacting with readers. Whether the sales happen or not I tend to leave
up to a higher power.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">As I’ve said before, I don’t
write for fame or fortune. I write to connect, to touch and hopefully, to
uplift.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">That’s just who I
am.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-22209141851197928562017-06-10T07:39:00.000-05:002017-06-10T07:39:02.048-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-67732456742613626912017-05-31T08:10:00.000-05:002017-05-31T08:10:35.809-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What the heck happened to May?
Here it is the last day of the month, which means tomorrow is the beginning of
June. Once June is over, that’s half of the year gone! Poof!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For a long while now, I have
wished there was a way to bring back that sense of time I had in childhood—that
sense that the days and weeks and months took what seemed like forever to pass.
I wasn’t sure how that could be done, exactly, but that has been one of the
things I sometimes muse on when I take my daily “legs up” rest. I need to put my
legs up for a bit each day because of my arthritis. This rest period is also a
time when I just relax in my electric recliner, and let my mind wander.
Sometimes I drift off, sometimes I don’t. It’s usually past midday at this point
and I’m usually slightly annoyed with myself for how little I’ve accomplished at
that point. And being annoyed brings other petty peeves to mind—like how the
older I get, the faster time seems to fly. So, having mused on the situation, I
came up with a bit of a solution, and I think it’s working.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">First, I haven’t read ahead as
to what the summer is predicted to be like, weather-wise this year. I’d just as
soon let that come on its own without any guesses from me. In fact, aside from
any engagements that might be on my calendar, I try very hard not to anticipate
ahead too much, period. The trouble with ‘counting’ down the days, in my
opinion, is that you can end up wishing away your time.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Time is far too precious for
that.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is a concept I’ve meant to
share with my beloved. However, he’s told me on more than one occasion lately
that his “ways” are set. He says 64 is too old to change. I’m not sure I agree
with that. But we’ve been married long enough now—forty-five years in July—that
I try to respect his points of view—even if I don’t share them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The other way I thought of to
slow time is to simply appreciate and be grateful for each new dawn. I do take a
moment to give thanks each morning, because I’m still alive. I imagine anyone
who’s had a brush with their own mortality is very conscious that each new day
is a gift.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve enjoyed, this spring,
taking note each day as to the way the trees have come back to life. In years
past, I was so busy doing, I didn’t take the time to just be. Hence, each spring
I would be shocked at the speed with which the trees seemed to go from bare
twigs to full leaf. This year I paid attention more and I saw, because I did
that, the incremental, though constant changes from day to day. Little buds that
grew to become an aura of light green that gradually darkened and expanded to
young leaf and finally to full leaf. That process took a few weeks! It wasn’t as
fast as I’d imagined. Imagine that!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You see, it occurred to me that
while our <i>perception</i> of time may be fast or slow, time itself lives
beyond our human perspective. It moves at a constant rate, and has since it
began. That fact cannot be altered, but our perceptions of its passing can
be.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I suppose it all comes back to
that mantra of mine you all have read many times before—everything in life is a
choice.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I think more people should
embrace that concept, and take the time to see how very true it is. There is
always a choice, and you, the individual are truly in the driver’s seat—oh,
maybe not so much for things that do happen to you beyond your
control.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">But you’re most certainly
completely in charge of how you react to those them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-66304463251118273322017-05-17T09:05:00.000-05:002017-05-17T09:05:12.227-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Last Sunday was Mother’s Day
here in North America. I specify the location, because I know that in the United
Kingdom the occasion is also celebrated, but quite a bit earlier—this year, it
was on March 11<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When I was a child, I didn’t
always have any money to buy my mother something for Mother’s Day. I usually
made the card for her, although once in a while, I bought one. Sometimes I
managed to get Mother a fancy tea cup and saucer set (they had them at our local
Kresge’s store, and at a very affordable price). Those times I couldn’t buy her
one of those cups, I would go out to the garden and pick her a bouquet of her
own flowers. She always claimed that as long as she was “remembered”—that meant
a card when I lived with her, and at least a phone call but preferably a visit
once I was older and out of the house, she was happy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">One of the biggest sins a child
could commit in my mother’s eyes (and here the word child refers to adult
children) was forgetting either Mother’s Day, or her birthday. I’m sad to say
that one birthday did go by without my calling her, or even remembering the day.
All these years later, I don’t remember the circumstances, only the result. I
think I was more upset about my transgression than she was.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I find, as I get older, there
are some ways that I’m becoming more and more like my mother. And this stance of
“you don’t have to buy me anything, just remember me” is one of those ways.
Flowers and cards are lovely—I have a drawer full of cards that I’ve been given
over the years as I never throw them away—but the time my kids spend with me,
either on the phone or in person, is truly the best gift of all.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This past Mother’s Day, my son
Christopher and daughter Jennifer both came to visit me, as did my “second
daughter”, Sonja. I enjoyed visiting with my son and his wife in the morning,
and the girls in the afternoon. They all brought cards and hanging baskets of
flowers for the porch. My great-granddaughter, when she visited the next day
with her nanny, picked me a tulip from my own garden. I considered myself very
blessed just for all those visits alone.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">You can be sure, I cherish that
tulip, even more than those lovely hanging baskets.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The traditions we honor in our
families are important. They form the legacy that we, through our observance of
them, hand down to the next generation. My parents have been gone many years
now, and yet some of the things they did for us and the way in which they did
them, found expression in my own family as I was raising my kids. For example,
all of my kids got giant oranges in their stockings for Christmas, as
did <i>their</i> children—and as did I, when I was little.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">That’s not to say the
traditions we pass down mean the same now as they did then. These days, large
oranges in December are not such a luxury as once they were. There were
Christmas mornings when we wanted to eat those oranges first, before even the
candy and the wonderful full breakfasts our mother made. Those big oranges were
juicy and sweet, and we didn’t even have to share them!</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I hope those of you who are
mothers were blessed to spend time with your children last Sunday. And I hope
the traditions you’re building in your families blossom into loving
legacies.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">They’re a true and beautiful
way to keep those long gone from this earth, close to your heart, and a way for
your children and grandchildren to remember you.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-23511755043059210872017-05-10T16:23:00.002-05:002017-05-10T16:23:08.207-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Just in case you were wondering
(and I am sure you were) today marks 196 days until my beloved hangs up his hard
hat, parks his safety boots, and turns in his final punch-card. Only 196 days to
go, and I am nowhere near ready for the change that is headed in my direction at
the speed of light.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve been giving the matter a
great deal of thought, as you can imagine. This is going to be a huge adjustment
for both of us, and completely different than the one we’d imagined it would be,
just a decade ago.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Ten years ago, my husband still
loved his job, and really didn’t want to think about retiring at 65. He felt
certain, in fact, that all things being equal, he’d still be happy to work at 70
or even 75, that they would have to drag him away from his truck, kicking and
screaming.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The fact that he no longer
loves his job, and the added complications that COPD have brought to his life
changed things, of course. And while his bosses have known for several months
that his retirement was coming up, it has come to light that they’re a little
reluctant to see him go.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">He’s still the go-to man when
something in the production line goes wrong and no one can figure out how to fix
it. They’ll ask him to supervise the repairs which he is happy to do. He just
can’t do that work himself anymore as it usually involves a lot of climbing up
and down stairs, and we’re talking a few dozen feet in the air. His boss told
him they didn’t know what they were going to do without him. Who was going to
train the younger ones coming on staff, in the proper way to do things? Last
year the company hired several new employees, and David spent some time training
every one of them.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There was a time he would have
been persuaded to put off retiring. As they continued to try and convince him to
do just that, he told them point blank: if they wanted him to stay that badly,
they could provide him transportation back and forth, to and from
work.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">He doesn’t have a driver’s
license, and hasn’t for more than thirty-five years, a consequence of his
misspent youth. The long daily treks are too hard on me, and our daughter, who
has been driving him every day for the last several years, has had enough. The
distance is about 25 miles one way, so for my daughter or myself to chauffeur
him, that’s 100 miles a day. Personally, I don’t believe they’ll take him up on
his offer and that’s really just as well.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My husband, in his career, has
left his mark. He has trained several men who are now supervisors—some at his
own site (the boss directly below the plant manager being one), and some at
other sites throughout the province.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The main crushing plant that he
built himself, beginning some thirty years ago, has mostly been replaced now,
but it did the job for a couple of decades. And while all the equipment in the
production line is relatively new, the principles of how to turn big limestone
rocks into various gravel products remains the same. In this day and age, more
than ever, you have the case of people with a lot of book knowledge but no
practical experience designing systems that never seem work, straight out of the
gate.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">But that’s the way it’s always
been, isn’t it?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So here we are, counting down
the days to something that not so long ago, really, seemed way, way off in the
distant future. It’s funny how that works, but I know it’s a common thing. So
common, in fact, that John Lennon once included that very observation in a
song.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Life really is what happens to
you while you’re busy making other plans.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-697823525616552082017-05-03T19:18:00.000-05:002017-05-03T19:18:00.327-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s finally May! This is my
favorite month of the year, because usually, by May, the winter is past, and the
flowers are blooming. Usually, by May, the aroma of freshly mown grass is mixing
with the scent of those flowers in the air. Laundry can be seen flapping happily
in the breeze, and the hope for new beginnings that seems to always dwell within
my heart is alive and thriving with anticipation.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yes, I’ve qualified all of the
above with the word “usually” because we all know nature can and will have its
own persnickety way. This must have been so when I was a child, too, because my
mother adhered to what at <i>that</i> time was an old saw—that you didn’t plant
your garden until the Victoria Day weekend, the weekend closest to the 24<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span> of the month of May. This wasn’t just
an adage, it was an acknowledged fact. I also reference the seed packets that we
used to get. That caution on the back that warned not to plant until “all danger
of frost was past” meant near the end of May, according to my mom.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">In May, the days become
noticeably longer. What May also use to represent to me was the end of the
television viewing season. New seasons of returning shows and brand new shows
began in the fall, and ended in May—freeing me from the addictive pull of the
“idiot box”, allowing me lots of time to do yard work.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The television season seems to
be constant now, but I still adhere to my own, admittedly old fashioned notions.
All of the series I watch are on the same American networks from my youth—ABC,
NBC and CBS. I really don’t do the cable programs, although my beloved certainly
does. Being an author of romance, I probably shouldn’t admit I’ve never watched
“Outlander”, but it’s true, and I have no logical explanation for that. My
husband loves that show, and he’s also a huge fan of Game of Thrones. That one I
can tell you without reservation I will never watch. I tend not to view anything
with blood or violence.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When I’m not watching the
handful of television programs I enjoy (mostly dramas or a couple that are
considered reality shows. We won’t even <i>talk</i> about so-called comedies
these days) I’m at my computer, writing, or at least pretending to be, or I’m
reading a book. My beloved is happy to don his wireless headphones, so I can
escape the noise of the box while I work or read. Yes, that does put us in
separate rooms for a good part of each evening, with the added conversational
hindrance that he’s wearing those headphones with the volume on high. Shouting
from here to there gets me nowhere. But hey, that’s what cell phones and text
messaging are for, right?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">May is the month when I can
leave the doors to my house open for a bit each day. Sadly, those doors lack
screens of any kind, so as soon as the bugs begin to emerge, the doors remain
closed. But at least I usually have a few days when I can air the house out from
the long winter. I do have a couple of windows that still have their screens,
and that helps, too.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">May isn’t the month when the
ants show up, usually. That’s April, and I was actually getting worried because
April was nearly done and I hadn’t seen a single one. Silly, right? I was
worried about not having the usual ant problem. But in these times of climate
change and evolving (or maybe devolving) natural occurrences, no ants by mid
April is different. If the ants can’t survive, what chance do we have? But whew,
I can report seeing, and disposing of my first ant of the season on April
27<span style="vertical-align: text-top;">th</span>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Curiously the little bugger was
on my writing desk, not in the kitchen. Hmm, that’s still different. Maybe I
should have stayed worried? Naw. Worrying is for those who don’t have any
vision, who don’t have any courage…and who don’t have any hope.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I may not have a comprehensive
vision, and I doubt I’m particularly brave. But hope? Yeah, I’ve got lots and
lots of that commodity.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So much so, that I spend my
life doing what I can, fostering that quality in others.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-24838260988141105742017-04-26T08:41:00.001-05:002017-04-26T08:41:08.151-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div id="ygrp-text">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I have a very low threshold
when it comes to being content. It really doesn’t take a lot for me to consider
myself to be reasonably satisfied in life. I suppose that’s a natural outcome
from having lived a life where nothing much was guaranteed. You know how the
so-call experts say that most families are only a couple of paychecks away from
financial disaster? That was us for most of our years raising our kids. I’ll be
honest with you: we got through it, but I sure as heck wouldn’t want to do it
all over again.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Here’s an example of what I’m
talking about when it comes to my state of mind: I’ve often told family and
friends that as long as I have enough coffee and bathroom supplies, I am
content. Yes, that seems like fairly low expectations. But I can easily imagine
how many people don’t have even that much. I’m grateful for the path I’m on, a
path that has spared me from extreme hardship. I was born into a nation that
hasn’t had armed conflict within its borders for over a hundred years. Not only
that, but this is a land of relative prosperity. I never went without a meal, as
a child. Maybe missed a few as a parent raising small children, but my kids
never went without a meal, either. Nor did they ever suffer a “poor” Christmas
or birthday, even when we were just a couple of paychecks away from financial
disaster. As much as I know my life could be “better”, financially speaking, I
am far more aware that my circumstances could always be much, much
worse.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Gratitude and a positive
attitude are so important in life, and I wish I could convey to everyone, just
how crucial they really are. Those two things are vital to your mental health, I
believe that with all my heart. As bad as things can get, and trust me, they get
bad for everyone from time to time, if you stay grateful, if you maintain a
positive attitude, the sharpest edges of the travails you’re traversing will be
dulled. As long as you can keep your spirits up, then the muck you’re walking
through stays on the bottom of your boots and doesn’t splash all over you and
those close to you.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Now please, I don’t want to
hear anyone tell me I don’t understand what it’s like; that I couldn’t possibly
know what it is to experience (fill in the blank). I do understand. I’ve
experienced times of great want, and times of great personal tragedy. My life
has not been all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows, to paraphrase a song from my
youth. But no one’s is, and if you can understand <i>that</i>, then that right
there is a huge bonus. That’s the first step. You can tell yourself, “ah, ok,
it’s not the cosmos crapping just on me. This sort of thing happens to
everyone”. The second step is to understand that hard times really do not come
to stay, they truly do come to pass. So wash your face, brush your hair, put on
a smile as you don your jeans and tee—and get to living through the day you’ve
been given.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We’re all in this together.
Maybe we have differences, but that’s ok. In any given group, not all of the
people agree about all of the stuff. That’s what makes life interesting. We were
blessed with the great good gift of free will, and that gift absolutely
guarantees diversity.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">But we, all of us, are in this
together. So don’t worry. When the water starts rising in your boat, know that
you’re not alone grabbing that pail and bailing. Just take a look around the
harbor. We’re all working right along side of you to stem the flood.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We were never intended to live
our lives in isolation, but to band together in community. And just as hard
times are easier to get through when shared, so, too, is joy multiplied that
exact same way.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">That’s truly the way we were
made.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
<br class="yui-cursor" />
</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-32958242659063385152017-04-19T10:28:00.000-05:002017-04-19T10:28:05.784-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div id="ygrp-text">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Do you ever “cruise” YouTube?
I’m going to confess that I do—a lot. Not only that, sometimes I do it when I’m
supposed to be doing something else, usually writing. It really is a giant time
suck, and I think the challenge of watching just one video should sit right up
there along side that decades-old challenge of eating just one potato chip. I’m
sure the more serious minded and the more sober of character among us likely
have no trouble at all giving YouTube a pass. I’ve never claimed to be either of
those things—serious minded or sober of character. I am, after all an author. We
tend to be neurotic and full of whimsy by nature.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Lately, I’m an author who
should put more time BICFOK (butt in chair, fingers on keyboard) than I do. So
far, I haven’t been challenged on this YouTube cruising habit of mine—truly a
time wasting habit—but if I am, I have my “explanation” ready, and in this, I’m
blessed. You see, I’m a writer, therefore everything I do can be considered
research.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There is some truth to that, in
fact. If I could ask for something “more” for myself it really would be more
self-discipline. I really do need more of that elusive quality. I try not to
beat myself up about things. I’m in my sixties, after all, and I’ve spent most
of my life “taking care of business” as it were. I’ve worked outside the home,
kept the home, and raised my kids, all at the same time. I’ve seen 51 novels
published since my first book came out in 2007. That’s an average of 5 novels a
year, which isn’t too bad a record at all.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">And still, I do beat myself up
over this time-wasting part of my character. I’m not certain I know how to curb
it, either. And just when I think I do, I see something on YouTube that is not
only compelling, it underscores themes which for better or worse find expression
in my novels. If you think my erotic romance novels are only about sex, I would
suggest you read one. They have sex in them, yes, but that’s not what they’re
about. They’re about people, and relationships and life.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">But I digress. I wanted to tell
you about a video I watched a couple of months ago on YouTube. (Another
digression here for those who aren’t so familiar with this medium. If you see
something you really like on YouTube, bookmark it. Otherwise, finding it again
can be an exercise in frustration and futility.) This particular video I wanted
to tell you about was part of a documentary on a senior citizen’s center,
highlighting the effect the programs there had on the lives of those who
participated, people who might otherwise just stay home alone all the time. This
one woman couldn’t say enough about what a change the center had brought to her
life. Her being able to attend that program gave her something to look forward
to. The program ran weekdays, and she went every single day it was
available.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">One of the workers at the
center asked her what she did with her time the other two days of the week,
Saturday and Sunday, when there was no program running. She admitted to this
worker that if she didn’t have <i>something</i> to keep her busy, she might
possibly go mad.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So, she’d found an activity she
could do, right there at home. The filmmaker’s cameras recorded her industry.
Apparently, there was a huge amount of “junk mail” that came to her house
through the week. On the weekends, then, she’d sit on her sofa, with that pile
of junk mail on one side of her, and a garbage bag on the other. And what she
did to keep busy was to open each piece of mail, and then proceed to tear each
page of it into small pieces, which she then deposited into the garbage bag.
This wasn’t by any means a speedy process for her. This lady didn’t move very
quickly and it took her time to reduce full pages of paper to small
bits.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I don’t think I can adequately
explain to you why this affected me so deeply. On the one hand, I was beyond sad
that there didn’t seem to be any family about to visit her, and that her
“living” moments appeared to be relegated only to the days and hours the
senior’s center was open. On the other hand, I was in awe of her positive
attitude. It didn’t matter if what she’d chosen to do with her time was to a
great purpose, or not; it only mattered that what she chose to do kept her
busy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">A lot of my stories touch on
the resiliency of the human spirit. I tend to look at the cup as being half full
instead of half empty. And while many believe that hard times only bring out the
worst in people, I tend to think that there are at least as many who shine in
those circumstances, as those who don’t.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">That wise old counselor,
Anonymous, really had it right. He said, and it is true: Life really is five
percent what happens to you, and ninety-five percent how you handle
it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-80545803155939979892017-04-12T14:01:00.002-05:002017-04-12T14:01:45.494-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Anger and hate. These two
emotions seem to be everywhere, filling the air around us with an invisible
smog, a choking, cloying miasma with the power to destroy everything good,
everything righteous, and everything beautiful. Can you see it? Can you feel
it?</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It seems that discourse today
is all about “sides”, a kind of us-versus-them mentality that has developed into
a scorched earth, take no prisoners kind of battle. It’s no longer just a matter
that people are on two sides of an intellectual divide, with fervent belief in
their own interpretation of the facts.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">It’s that there are two
opposing sets of facts, period. And for all I know, even more than two. All you
appear to need to “create” reality is a loud voice, dogged persistence, and
internet bots.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is all my perception, I
will gladly admit this, but I know I’m not alone in my interpretation of what is
happening in the world around us. It’s extremely wearing, isn’t it? The word
“compromise” has not only been struck from the lexicon of daily social
interaction: I greatly fear it is being expunged from our very
memories.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve been totally upfront in
these essays, letting my readers know where I stand, faith-wise. I don’t, as a
rule, proselytize. And perhaps it’s because of my faith that I feel this
darkness, this hate and anger spreading throughout the land so very deeply. You
see, I’ve come to realize the worst perpetrators of this sickness are those who
claim to cling to the very faith that is so dear to me, and at the core of my
own beliefs.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">What I can see, and what I
believe, is their actions and their stated beliefs are at odds with
Christianity, as I know it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’m not going to preach
religion in this essay. I’m trying only to reveal my own intellectual and
spiritual struggles with the world around me. And what I see are a whole lot of
people whose actions <i>do not</i> reflect the meaning of the words they use to
justify those actions. It all comes down to one thing, for me, and that’s having
the fruit on the tree. You can’t say you belong to Christ if you are exhibiting
behavior that is not Christ-like. This is not judgement; this is called
spiritual discernment.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There are many
in <i>every</i> faith who hold to good, positive practices and
behaviors—behaviors like kindness, generosity, caring, and love. There are those
who eschew religious faith completely who are kind, generous, caring and loving
individuals. People who spread love, not hate. Christians do not have a monopoly
on these qualities. No one religion does.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I suppose at the core it comes
down to the fact that we are sometimes confusing two separate nouns representing
two separate things: religion, and faith. The first is of man, the second is of
God.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I know there is a purpose to
the turmoil we’re all witnessing because I know who ultimately is in control. I
also know I’m not the only one getting world-weary of the nastiness. I have no
great idea or grand plan to combat the plague that is consuming so many in this
world today.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">All I can do is to say to you,
this is what I think it is, and this is how it affects me, so that those who
feel the same way know they are not alone. Sometimes, realizing you’re not alone
can be a tremendous boon.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">There is one more thing I can
do. I can re-affirm my own faith, my own values, and repeat as my own mantra
that hard times really don’t come to stay.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">They truly come to
pass.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-49086583486728230772017-04-05T17:02:00.004-05:002017-04-05T17:02:38.737-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Now that we’ve gotten through
winter, lost an hour’s cherished sleep, and been April fooled, it’s time to
begin to consider the serious matter of gardening. While it’s true that I can no
longer get down into the dirt myself, that doesn’t in anyway detract from the
joy I receive planning what blooms we’ll have this year around the
house.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For myself, I’ve given up on
the veggies. The proper place for them is in a nice-sized dinner garden at the
very least, and there’s only one place here for us to reasonably put one. There
is room at the top of our backyard, but that climb is too steep for me. David
continues to experiment with growing veggies in pots. We’ve also heard of a
raised “table garden” but we haven’t found one yet. My beloved is considering
building one himself. We’ll have to wait and see. He’s in charge of any veggie
experiments as I begin to plan for the flowers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">One of my favorite flowers to
get from a nursery and plant each spring are pansies. Around here, they’re only
available in the very early spring, so I’ll likely be hunting them down within
the next couple of weeks. I like to buy a veritable profusion of them, and then
put them in the three rectangular planters I have, that will then hang from the
front porch railing. They get morning sun there, and with watering, and care,
they often fill out those planters beautifully.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">My favorite perennial spring
blooms are narcissi (the white ones with the yellow and red lines encircling the
cup) and lily-of-the-valley. I’m also a big fan of lilacs, daffodils and tulips.
It was a couple of years ago, now, that I finally got my hands on a pair of
lilac trees. They’re planted, one at each of the two front corners of my house,
where the one gets sun until about eleven-thirty each morning, and the other
through most of the day. They haven’t grown a great deal in size yet, but they
have survived the winters, so far. Near the base of the lilac tree planted on
the north-east corner, the one that is shaded half the day, there are several
lilies-of-the-valley that my son brought for me when he thinned out his own
patch a couple of years ago. I look forward, with great anticipation, to the day
when both the lilacs and the lilies scent the air at the same time. I remember
that combined aroma from my childhood. It’s heavenly.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We have perennials lining the
short walkway, from curb to stairs, and along the front of the house from the
north-east corner to the walnut tree that anchors the south-east corner of the
porch. Among those are two peony bushes—another favorite. Some flowers are
pretty, and some smell divine—its those that have both of those qualities I tend
to like the most.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Last year, we finally planted
some gladioli in the back yard, at the back of the narrow garden along the
fence. We had greenery last year, but no blooms. My fingers are crossed for this
year. We have one “tub” garden, as well, next to the south backyard gate. This
we’ve filled each summer with petunias, and whatever other annuals we have left
over from planting in our various gardens and pots. The tub is a repurposed,
oversized round garbage bin made of black plastic. It stands about four feet
high. The flowers in this tend to be the most productive in the yard, likely
because the bin started out as a composting bin.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">A few years back, we purchased
a gazebo and some outdoor carpeting, and transformed our back yard into a
pleasant place to sit when weather permits. This year, we need to replace the
carpet and the canvas of the gazebo. I’m not confident we’ll get that one done.
Much depends these days on how much energy we have, and whether or not the
weather cooperates. A new outdoor grill would be nice, too, as ours is nearly
done. It’s good to have a list of what you’d like to do, isn’t it? At least
having goals keeps your mind, and your spirit, active.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">This is one of the things I
cherish most about spring, and why it’s my favorite season. It tends to be the
time of year when we think about new beginnings, and fresh starts.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.morganashbury.com/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.morganashbury.com/">http://www.morganashbury.com</a></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><a href="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury" rel="nofollow" target="_blank" title="http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury">http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury</a></span></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-63208307895291896882017-04-03T07:40:00.000-05:002017-04-03T07:40:03.713-05:00<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8NNuykoPQSCOtUiWxOwhyphenhyphenKnd3POLZ_5J_MDba6i9PZsmoePlsQMixTb1oYt3blcJg_jSgP9iAhRGi_NysxT6tgndqIH4fpHmCXVKowXq1ADlm9csd5Dpesa0JjNK880kTDpTP/s1600/OHI0368-QUOT-RobertCormierBrainSurgery-600.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8NNuykoPQSCOtUiWxOwhyphenhyphenKnd3POLZ_5J_MDba6i9PZsmoePlsQMixTb1oYt3blcJg_jSgP9iAhRGi_NysxT6tgndqIH4fpHmCXVKowXq1ADlm9csd5Dpesa0JjNK880kTDpTP/s400/OHI0368-QUOT-RobertCormierBrainSurgery-600.jpg" width="308" /></a></div>
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-90700592487481137052017-04-01T00:30:00.000-05:002017-04-01T00:30:00.193-05:00April Fools’ Fake Out: How to Sneak Healthy Twists Into Kids’ Favorites<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3FxiDLfWIyxTMXM8OmB8KlmbDav1Gk911r-EIBrjL0LAMhL5iXHaXvz_z6A9SbtBRIHJlrdtrvUhJcFhGJTeCghmP7sg_K0b_BmsUf726aDM30tFir65sB5WtMlHQcn28HyW-/s1600/HomestyleSauce.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="163" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3FxiDLfWIyxTMXM8OmB8KlmbDav1Gk911r-EIBrjL0LAMhL5iXHaXvz_z6A9SbtBRIHJlrdtrvUhJcFhGJTeCghmP7sg_K0b_BmsUf726aDM30tFir65sB5WtMlHQcn28HyW-/s200/HomestyleSauce.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
<div>
(<a href="http://newsusa.com/" target="_blank">NewsUSA</a>) – Sponsored News – As a busy working mom to two young children, Tamera Mowry-Housley, co-host of TV’s “The Real,” understands the daily challenge of juggling her time between home and work. However, family time is of the utmost importance to her, and she still sets aside time to cook meals with her family almost every night. She encourages other parents to reclaim family dinner nights, and there’s no better time to start than summer, when the days are longer and the weather is perfect for backyard dinners.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
While it may sound daunting and time-consuming to prepare dinner after a long day at work, it doesn’t have to be. To make cooking easier, the RAGU brand has launched its new line of RAGU Homestyle sauces that have a heartier texture and a bolder flavor. Even the most demanding home cooks would be proud to serve new RAGU Homestyle sauces to their family, including Mowry-Housley.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
“I’m a busy mom, but I make it a priority to set aside time to unplug and connect with my family over a meal almost every day — products like RAGU Homestyle sauces help me do that quickly and easily,” said Mowry-Housely. She partnered with the makers of RAGU because dishes made with quality ingredients are must-haves at her family’s table, year round.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
RAGU Homestyle Sauces contain no artificial colors, no artificial flavors and no high-fructose corn syrup. “The great ingredients and made-from-scratch taste make me feel good about serving RAGU Homestyle pasta sauce to my friends and family,” added Mowry-Housley.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
With its new line of sauces, the RAGU brand is honoring its rich heritage by using the tried-and-true cooking methods inspired by its founder, Assunta Cantisano, who started selling homemade pasta sauce in 1937. Made from a bold combination of vine-ripened tomatoes, onions and fragrant herbs and spices such as basil, oregano, fennel and ground black pepper, the ingredients are peeled, chopped and simmered to perfection. The result is a thicker and heartier sauce that hugs pasta perfectly, making it an easy choice for family meals.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
With the variety of sauces available — Traditional, Meat, Mushroom, Roasted Garlic and Four Cheese — there are many summer-inspired dishes you can create. For recipe inspiration, Mowry-Housley recommends watching a delicious grilled chicken parmesan and zucchini noodles recipe video featuring RAGU Homestyle Traditional. The recipe was developed by lifestyle influencer </div>
<div>
Dzung Duong of the popular YouTube channel “Honeysuckle,” and can be found here: <a href="https://youtu.be/S3QVZ6bxt8E">https://youtu.be/S3QVZ6bxt8E</a>.</div>
<div>
<br /></div>
<div>
For more information and additional recipe inspiration, check out http://www.RAGU.com and follow along on Instagram, Pinterest, Facebook and Twitter.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13754210.post-87904957558594677552017-03-29T18:36:00.001-05:002017-03-29T18:36:33.276-05:00Wednesday's Words, by Morgan Ashbury<div id="ygrp-text">
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">We have a dog, who is actually
more than just a pet. He’s the baby of our family, the very apple of his daddy’s
eye, and is more spoiled than any of our other children, who were born without
fur, ever were.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Our baby is a member of the
hybrid breed known as Morkie. He’s a cross between a Maltese and a Yorkie, and
he turned four years old this past Christmas Day. He weighs all of seven and a
half pounds. We became his forever family when he was eight weeks old. My
beloved fell in love with him from a photo my daughter brought over that she’d
printed from the internet, from a site here in Canada called Kijiji (which is
comparable to Craig’s List).</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Three months prior, we’d lost
our beloved dog, Rochie (short for ferocious, which he never was), a
ninety-pound lab-cross. Rochie was eleven. He’d suffered a stroke overnight, and
the only humane thing to do was relieve his suffering, as he couldn’t walk and
seemed completely confused and disoriented. David really loved Rochie, his best
friend who he’d raised from a pup that had belonged to one of our grandsons. In
the months following his loss, David seemed a little subdued. Our daughter
informed me her father was lonely when I returned, in early February of that
year, from a week away. She told me, admonished me, really, that
Daddy <i>must</i> have another dog. I was unconvinced. This led to her bringing
that picture and showing her daddy, and asking him if he would like to have
“this cute little puppy”. And her daddy, who had previously admonished me in no
uncertain terms that there would be <i>no more pets</i> in the Ashbury
household? Yeah, he caved like a house of cards.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">For the doggie daddy, it was
love at first sight. David really wanted the dog, and I’m not one to say no when
my beloved wants something. Mr. Tuffy represents a couple of notable firsts for
our family. He’s the first dog for which we paid money—and a lot of money, at
that. He’s also the first small dog we’ve ever owned.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">When he arrived here, we both
fell in love with him. He was his daddy’s baby first and foremost, and while it
had been agreed that the puppy would sleep in his crate (which was actually a
baby’s play pen) beside the bed each night, almost right from the beginning, and
unbeknownst to me at the time, David snuck him into the bed with us.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Yeah, that whole pretense of
using the playpen only lasted until that day a couple of months later, in May
when our daughter arrived to babysit him while we went to a writer’s event in
the U.S.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Mr. Tuffy has earned his place
as a beloved member of the family. He is, in reality, at the center of life here
in the Ashbury household. He will eat dog kibble, but only as a side dish.
Otherwise, his diet consists of chicken, pork, beef, liver—and even lamb.
Hamburger, not so much. I shouldn’t say <i>even</i> lamb, because it is one of
his favorites. Mr. Tuffy has a wardrobe filled with sweaters and jackets. He
actually has more sweaters than I do. He has a box of toys in the living room.
He sleeps on our bed at night, as I said, and during the day, one may often find
him perched on my desk, between my tower and my monitor.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">He also has his own “bed”, of
course, and that is on the floor beside my desk—his second favorite daytime
resting place. In this bed is a “blanket”, and several bones. He loves his
bones. We refer to his bed as his bone-bed, and he’s in it for at least one nap
every day—unless, of course, the cat decides she wants the bed,
instead.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">The cat has a habit of stealing
his sleeping spots and has stolen every one except for the one which is our bed.
On the rare occasions that the cat demands to sleep on the bed at night, her
preferred (and only) spot is just above my pillow making it easy for me, her
servant, to slip a hand under her and one on top of her as I try to go to
sleep—and for her to bat me with her paw if I don’t.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Mr. Tuffy also
has <i>issues</i>, the main one being extreme separation anxiety. This has been
an issue that developed gradually and unexpectedly when he was about two, and
has been ongoing. The vet has said we could medicate him, but neither of us has
any desire to do that. Instead, we do what families do when one of their members
develops “issues”. We simply cope.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Mr. Tuffy is no longer left
alone, ever. If we have to go out to a place where he cannot come, we take him
to the one other place in this world where he will feel ok—our daughter’s house.
She has Chihuahuas who have been his buddies since day one. And, considering the
role she played in making sure we had Mr. Tuffy as her baby brother in the first
place, it’s only fitting her house is plan B for us and for him.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12pt;">I’ve known people in my
lifetime who would have considered this kind of a problem to be a deal-breaker.
I’ve known people who’ve decided after the fact that pets weren’t really for
them, and have removed them from their families. But that’s not us. We take our
obligations seriously. In our view, once you adopt a pet, that pet is yours—in
much the same way that a baby born to you or adopted by you is
yours—forever. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">So yes, this is Mr. Tuffy’s
forever home, and we will likely continue to spoil him, and deal with any future
issues he may develop which, really, is no chore for us at all.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Giving in love, whether to a
pet, a person, or a purpose is one of life’s greatest callings and purest
joys.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Love,</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 12pt;">Morgan</span></div>
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