Sequel on Amazon! rain! and a reason to be thankful...

Well, my book, "Carrick Cove" (sequel to "Time After Time") is finally up on Amazon... both in paperback and on Kindle under my pen name, D'Arcy Regan Hart. But I have to say a strange thing happened when I was adding it to Kindle.

First it was up in paperback on Amazon and the cover was the one I had decided on and showed you in a previous post.  But for whatever reason, when I added it to Kindle, it wouldn't take the cover? Well, it would 'take' the cover, but half of the dog in the cove was cut off? 

I played around with it for a bit, but nothing seemed to help until I used another cover format. So, if you go to Amazon.com and look for the book, it comes up with a cover picture and if you click on the picture, you will see it available in both formats - but if you click on paperback, you get one cover and when you click on Kindle, you get the other...?? Guess it doesn't matter, they are similar, but just wondering why. 

There's not a lot else going on around here at the moment. We had a ton of rain and flash flooding in and around Dallas, but not specifically in our area. We do live on a creek, and I'm sure the creek was high (I didn't go look), but we're built about 5 feet above it, so it has never risen up to the house. I think Dallas/Ft Worth did get 9-10 inches - which has caused a lot of problems in some areas.

Oh, and I did go to my Cardiologist's appointment this week to take that vascular ultrasound.  I was told it would take a few days to get the results. 

I probably shouldn't mention this, but there was a gentleman in the Cardiologist's office waiting for his appointment and he was told that his doctor had an emergency heart attack to attend to and he would have to reschedule.  Now these things happen I realize, but it had to be so inconvenient for him as he was very heavy set, had both legs wrapped up, was using a walker... and was all alone. I just felt that it must have taken him a lot to get there and now he has to come back another time. No ones fault, I know... just sad. 

DH and I saw him outside sitting in his car when we left. He was sitting there with the door open and his head down. So we asked him if he was OK. He said he was, just sitting there thinking. We told him that we heard them have to reschedule him and that was a shame. He said, "Yes, that it took him half the day to get there... but what can you do? Emergencies happen." His attitude was good, but I can't stop thinking about him and how there must be so many others like him out there trying to get on with health problems and all alone. Made me feel so lucky that DH and I have each other... and our children.

Have a wonderful day and weekend - it's Labor Day weekend!

(OK, it's only Thursday, but almost the weekend)

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

aging and fear...

I found that Tom (at Sightings over Sixty) had an especially interesting post this week, "What are you afraid of?"  I do find that one of the things I seem to struggle with as I age is fear. Why? I don't know. But it seems to raise it's ugly head in a variety of ways these days. 

I, at only 77(only 77 - that's a bit funny in itself) stopped driving about 2 years ago after getting in a car accident. It wasn't a bad one... since no one was injured - although my poor car was totaled (but it was old) and the air bags bruised my arms and chest. It was my fault since I was turning left on a yellow blinking light and the other car was going straight on green. But the thing is, I had looked and did not see any car coming across. How does that happen? It thoroughly affected my confidence. What if I had hurt someone? How did I not see that car?

Anyway, that's one fear that I've had to face. I already didn't drive on highways or alone on trips due to the sudden onset of migraines - which affect my sight. (and no, I wasn't having a migraine the day of the accident). So, not driving at all wasn't that big a loss... especially since I still have DH and my grandson. 

That brings us to another fear:  losing one's spouse. Since many of my friends have lost theirs - some quite recently - this is something else that needs facing - not dwelling on, but facing. To be honest, I hope to go first and avoid the whole thing... and I know that's cowardly. People say that women survive losing a spouse better than men, but I'm not too sure about that.

Losing a pet is another fear - a recent one actually. I mean most of us have dealt with losing pets our whole lives - after all, they don't live as long as we'd like them to. But now - after losing the last 3 (right around the pandemic), I can't bear to think about losing another. Maybe it's due to my age and I've gotten more vulnerable, but the thought of going through that again is just not on. 

I know there are others - all the ones Tom mentioned in his post and more. But I find that the best thing to do is to not dwell on any of our fears.  Realize that when the time comes to face a fear, we will have the necessary ability to do so.  The saying that God doesn't give us more than we can handle has some truth in it - although I don't look at it in a religious manner - more in that the strength to handle life comes from within ourselves (whether that is considered a gift from God is a personal choice). 

Well, I started this without any idea of where it was going, but must give Tom credit for starting this train of thought.  However, there is one more little fear that sometimes crops up unexpectedly due to age. It's that condescending feeling that is sometimes felt when someone patronizes you because of your age (like young drivers who fly by you when you're going the speed limit or people who call you "young lady", etc.) These may not be good examples, but if you're over 65, you know what I mean...

Closing this now. It's Saturday and a 'not as hot as usual' weekend! So, enjoy what is left of it and thank you for putting up with my  monkey brain that just got jump-started this afternoon.

Hugs (virtual),

Rian 

something to think about...

Also I had put in a long comment on Tom's post - but for whatever reason, it disappeared.(?) In it I mentioned that although I do fear gun violence, nuclear war, climate change, and political unrest, I feel that outside of voting, there is little I can do about it. And traffic accidents and road rage are real dangers these days since people seem to be in a constant state of unrest...

Getting through August in Texas...

I was looking through some photos this morning and came across this one. My first thought was.. "Wow! I wish I was there right now".  This is a secluded beach on Maui.  Our son took this shot when they were there this summer.  I've never been to Maui, but I have been to Oahu... and they have some pretty darn nice secluded beaches there too. I guess it's these hot August days in Texas that makes this beach seem even more inviting...

When people mention 'beaches'... one tends to think of crowded acres of sand with bodies lounging everywhere. Not me. I love the water... but prefer no people around... just the gentle lapping of the waves and the clean scent of ocean air. To walk on the beach in silence or to sit and have a cup of coffee by the water at either the beginning or the end of the day - that's pretty close to perfect for me.

It is now Thursday morning... and believe it or not, it was 76 F here this morning. It won't last, but hey, I'll take it!

Now I'm going to add a few more pics of our completed guest room. We got the bench in yesterday. I think the room looks comfortable... and when DH's brother was here, they said it was. But daughter will be here in a few weeks... and she will give us her honest opinion.

the new bench

The grey mini-blinds may have to be replaced. They are 37 years old. Or I could possibly put some blue or grey semi-sheers over them so they wouldn't be so obvious...  And maybe I could fine something suitable in a long board with some saying on it for behind the bed's headboard. We'll see.

And I don't know if you were aware of it, but yesterday was supposedly National Black Cat Day!  So here's a pic I took off of Facebook that actually looks a lot like our BK...

He even has the little white hairs
 on his chest like our BK!

Isn't he a beautiful cat?

And I'll leave with this: (because it made me laugh)

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

Getting closer to publication...

 

This is the first copy of the new sequel to "Time After Time". It is basically Book 2 of Annie's Story. But as you can see, it is not out for publication yet. This is the author's first 'proof' copy to see how the cover looks as well as a last chance to proof check.

I like the cover and have already gone through another 'proofing'. So it's just a matter of uploading and submitting the finished product. If I can get it all done by the end of next week, it should be available on Amazon before the end of August. It will be in paperback first, but Kindle soon after. 

And I have a question, have any of you used Kindle's Vella?  It's another publishing site on Amazon where you publish only Chapters at a time... kind of a continuing ongoing saga. I'm not exactly sure how it works and was just wondering if anyone had tried it (reading or publishing).

Now for those of you who are not the least bit interested in an old lady(Annie)'s story of life after widowhood, I want to tell you that while we just recently got rid of beaucoup books at Half-price Bookstore, I also just took home 2 boxes of books from a friend's house. Most of these I've already read - like Miss Julia, Aunt Dimity, etc. But I will read them again. They are fun night-time reading and I have enjoyed them over the years. I also brought home The Outlander series, Lady of Hay, and just recently finished re-reading Galway Bay. These are also favorites, but heavier reading.

I don't have a lot to share this post. I did visit my Cardiologist this week for a routine check. As far as I can tell, everything is fine although he wants me to come back for an Vascular Ultrasound in a few weeks. I've been having a strange tingling sensation running down the right side of my neck lately. I assume it's just another one of those mysterious old age symptoms, but he wants to check it out.

Oh, and our granddaughter returned to school this week (as I'm sure many of yours did also). She is only 9, but seems older in this picture... 

And it's Friday! TGIF! Wishing you all a wonderful weekend!

Hugs (virtual),

Rian

another 'catch up' post...

Another busy week and a strange question...

Busy because we had company coming for the weekend and I haven't thoroughly cleaned this house in over 2 years.  I mean I've dusted and mopped, etc., but that's about it. We didn't go anywhere and no one visited except the kids during Covid.

And we were also trying to put together a guest room again... which meant finding a bedroom set we liked, having it delivered, as well as new sheets, quilt, lamps, etc. It took a little doing, but we did it! 

...still needs a little work, but it's useable

DH's younger brother and his wife came this past Thursday and we had a good visit, talking, eating, going to restaurants - there's an Italian restaurant we all love (Valentino's in Rowlett) - food and service is great - family owned and just an overall great experience every time (and fantastic bread pudding!). 

We also hit Ham's Peach Orchard - another favorite - where we all picked up home-made peach ice-cream, peach pulled pork sandwiches, peach cider, as well as an assortment of local produce and products. We sat outside and ate our ice-creams in the rockers out back. The weather was warm... but strange enough, there's always a breeze out there that makes it very comfortable.

The next day we hit the Crepe place (Frogg's Coffee Bar and Creperie) where the Eggs Benedict crepe was a big hit... as well as the Strawberry and Cream crepe... and the Banana's Foster crepe!

(I know that I should have taken pics, but didn't think about it.)

We also went to Eataly's - which is the huge Italian store in the mall that carries everything from Italy... from candies to pasta to fresh and refrigerated products. They also have a wonderful coffee shop as well as a fresh pasta bar and several restaurants. Took home 4 different types of their fresh-made pizzas for supper! Delicious!

Yes, we ate our way through the weekend! But we only do this twice a year. We go to Houston to visit them once during the year and they come here in the summer. Some of the places have become 'usuals' but occasionally we try something new.

It's a lot of 'going' for DH and I who are home-bodies, but fun - as we spend a lot of time talking over coffee and catching up (and while the brothers talked -sometimes the women went off and took a well -needed afternoon nap).

**************************

Now for a strange question:  Does anyone else 'talk' to their car? I sometimes forget to buckle up and the car reminds me with a certain beeping sound... whereas I respond with, "Oops, sorry Mikey!" And DH does the same... usually when a Lexus parks beside us. Mikey is a Lincoln MKC (thus: Mikey). 

These 'smart' cars are unusually perceptive (as are our iPhones) and seem to know exactly where we're going or coming from each day. It surprised me the first time it started to drizzle... and the windshield wipers came on by themselves. And recently I was inundated with ads for those memory foam mattress toppers. The strange thing is that although I had been 'talking' about whether the new guest bed needed one, I had not been looking for one online... so how did they know? Did they listen to me talking? 

Next a pic of one of the smaller Box Turtle that  showed up in the yard recently:

small box turtle in DH's hand

And another video of Mama bunny and her babies:

This video may have to be clicked on twice. I wish I could make it bigger, but don't know how. I think you can do a full page by clicking, but not sure. These are the first 2 generations of baby bunnies, there's a 3rd generation and possibly a 4th... (they do breed like rabbits).

And I'll close with this I found on Facebook:

This is how I get it done these days...

And that's my update for today! Hope everyone is having a good August so far.  School is already starting and before we know it, Thanksgiving and Christmas will be upon us (can you believe?) 

Hugs (virtual),

Rian 

August 1, 2022 Rabbit Rabbit! White Rabbit!

Rabbit Rabbit! White Rabbit!

Just a quick hello to say Rabbit Rabbit! White Rabbit!

and

...to post a pic of 2nd Black Swallowtail that emerged!

smaller... but still beautiful

Hugs (virtual),

Rian