What's Up With You?

Hi all,

Well, for all you working people, today is 'hump' day.  Of course you all know that means it's Wednesday and you are officially on the down spin to the weekend.  I dont' work outside the house anymore, so whether it's hump day or not, it really doesn't matter to me. 

What have you been up to, anything creative?  Basically for me, that's my what I'm good at and what I'd rather do than anything else.  My hand made greeting cards are coming along very well.  I do so enjoy creating them and I hope that the people I mail them to, enjoy getting them. 

I've been working on my sequel novel, "Crafty-Cruise With a Capital C", the past few days.  If you haven't read my first adult novel, "Sassy With A Capital S", you can purchase it for Kindle at:  www.amazon.com.  It's a great story about friendship between women and they find themselves with  a mystery to solve.  I also have a children's novel available for Kindle at:  www.amazon.com. 

I've commissioned my daughter, Angel, to draw a picture for me to use in my new novel.  She's a very good artist, although she rarely does any drawing anymore.  I think that's sad, but I know she's very busy, what with a full time job and a family.  She does have a on-line business.  Please feel free to check out her site at:  www.angiealbright.athome.com.   It's called 'At Home', and they carry anything and everything you would use in your home.  Their products are a good quality and they are always running super sales.  My oldest daughter, Marlena, also sells At Home.  Her website is:
www.marlenaebersole.athome.com.  Both of them would be very happy for you to check out their sites and purchase some of At Home's wonderful pieces.

Well, I also have one other daughter, Candy.  She has her own business, also, with Tastefully Simple.  If you haven't tried any of their products yet, you really must.  They are great tasting and quick to prepare.  Her web site is:  www.TSbyCandy.com.  Or, perhaps you'd want to check out my Grandson's website at:  www.amway.com/coriebersole.  He sells Amway products.  If you haven't seen or heard about Amway for many years, let me tell you that they are completely different than they were years ago.  I am certainly impressed with their products, especially the 'green' cleaning products.  Check it out, you will be impressed, too!

Well, I guess I've tooted my families horns enough for now.  But, seriously, you need to find out what your creative abilities are.  We all have creative abilities, some of us use them, and some don't.

Have a great evening and tune in for my next blog.
Susan

I'm Moving Right Along!

Hi all,

Well, the weekend is rapidly coming to an end.  I hope it was a good one for all of you.  I also hope that you got to do something nice for yourself, or something fun.  As for me, my weekend was very a very productive one. 

I spent some time on Saturday working on a new card design, which I must admit, was a bit tricky.  I made four cards with matching envelopes, but it took me about three and one half hours to finish them.  At that rate, I'd never get my cards finished by the time I needed them! 

I do enjoy trying out new designs but that is a bit time consuming.  Oh well, they're done now and I got to play with a new technique.  So, I'm not really complaining.

I also spent about two hours yesterday on my writing.  My novel is coming along very well.  I also spent about an hour and a half doing research for it.  Research is a very important part of writing.  One that you can not let slide.  It is essential that anything you may refer to in your novel are actual facts.  Make sure you get all your facts straight! 

I was writing about a musical group (a fictional group) who was playing songs from the big band era.  They were doing renditions of the Glen Miller Band and the Benny Goodman Band.  So, obviously, I needed to do some research on the music those bands played, some title names and so forth.  I couldn't just make something up when those groups were not fictitious.  Keep that in mind if you are planning on doing any writing.  Whether you are writing fiction or non-fiction, all your facts must be true.  Research! Research! Research!

I was just thinking this morning how much easier it is today to do that research.  Twenty five years ago, I'd be going to the library or trying to find some facts in my encyclopedias.  It really is so much easier today.  You just turn on your computer and do a search.  How easy is that?  And how much faster? 

Anyone who is a teenager or perhaps in their early twenties,  has no idea what I am talking about.  They grew up with computers.  I'm not even sure if they still manufacture encyclopedias.  Does anyone else know?  Just wandering!

I hope I get a chance to do some writing every day this week.  I do have a commitment on Tuesday morning and I really must get started on my cleaning.  Although, it's very easy for me to put off the cleaning in favor of writing or creating my cards.  We'll just have to see how the week progresses.

I hope you all have a good week.  Travel safely and don't forget a little time for yourself each day!
Susan

Boy, It's Cold Out Today!

Hi all,

Is it cold where you are?  Well, it is freezing here and it's snowing, as well.  The only good thing about the snow storm is that it's moving very quickly.  It should be out of here within the hour.  Hurrah!  We have about two or so inches.  I suppose I can put up with that much.  Of course, I really don't have much of a choice, now do I?

Today I donated about fifty hand bound novels to the York Catholic High School Library.  I'm sure they will put them to good use.  They have the library for the students, but they also have a small library for the adults at the school. 

Do you read?  I do.  I read every day.  In fact, I just finished one of JD Robb's book and then I started another one by her.  If you aren't familiar with JD Robb it is the pen name for Nora Roberts.  I love her books no matter what name she writes under. 

There are quite a few authors who write under their own names and also under a pen name.  I read that Stephen King said he first wrote under a pen name because he was afraid no one would buy his work.  Boy, was he wrong.  Maybe I should start writing under a pen name.  What do you think?   Although, I truly don't see the need for that.  I suppose I'll just stick with my own name.  What would you do:  write under a pen name or your own name?

My husband took me to Joanne Fabrics and Crafts today.  I needed to purchase some fabric for a small quilted piece I'm going to make to put around the base of the tree in my bedroom.  I'm also going to be working on a quilted runner for my dining room table.  Do you do any sewing, either by machine or by hand?  Of course, being a creative person, I love creating anything. 

I found a new pattern for my hand made greeting cards.  I'm anxious to try it out.  Hopefully this week I'll get a chance to get back up to my craft room to try it out.  I have about one half of this years greeting cards finished.  I love coming up with new styles and patterns.  It amazes me how my projects have improved over the years.  I guess that old adage, ' Practice makes perfect' is true.

Well, the weekend is upon us.  Do you have any special plans over the next two days?  I don't have any commitments, but I do have plenty of things to do between my writing, cards and quilting to keep myself busy.  Whatever you do, try to find some time for yourself.  Some time to do whatever gives you pleasure and lets you feel good about yourself. 

So, I will wish everyone a great weekend.  Keep safe and have some fun.
Susan

Man, Oh Man, It's Cold Out There!

Hi all,

Well, I guess I have to say that Old Man Winter has finally arrived.  My car registered the temperature at eighteen degrees this morning.  That was about eleven fifteen.  I'm sure the wind factor actually brought the temperatures down to about ten degrees.  I have to tell you that I'm not liking this weather at all.  How about You?

I do love having the change of the seasons, though.  So, I guess I have to stop complaining now.  We purchased a new furnace back in November and it's working great.  Now the next large purchase we have to do is to buy a new air conditioning unit.  That's going to happen in early spring.  Hopefully after we do that, we'll be all set with a new furnace and central air unit.  At least I hope so.

I was hoping to find some time today to work on my sequel novel, but it just didn't happen.  This morning I had a doctor's appointment and then this afternoon my Grandson, Cori, stopped in to help us set up an ongoing order account for Amway.  He's fairly new to Amway, but he's doing very well.  He's working his business, giving it all he has.  If you haven't heard about Amway for many years, perhaps you'll want to check out his web site:  www.amway.com/coriebersole

So, hopefully tomorrow will be a good writing day.  I would like to spend about an hour or so in my craft room working on a few more hand made greeting cards.  I've made great progress so far, but I still have a good many more to create.  The only cards I will not make early is my Christmas cards.  I'll wait to start those until November. 

I really love being creative!  It's my passion.  How about you?  What do you do that you are passionate about?  It's what you do that gives you self esteem.  Come on, there has to be something!

My doctors appointment went well today.  I've been fighting a cold, or sinus/allergy problems for the last four weeks.  She informed me that the 'cold' that's going around now, is lasting anywhere from six to eight weeks.  She called in a prescription for me for a nasal prescription.  She thought that would help better than the over-the-counter ones.  I'll try it tonight.  I hope it helps!

I hope you will do something creative soon.  Have a great Wednesday, tomorrow.  Be back soon.
Susan

Back In The Groove...

Hi all,

How is everyone doing on this nice Saturday in January of 2013?  I suppose we should enjoy today's weather, as starting tomorrow it's going to get much colder out there.  Actually, so far this winter, we've been lucky, temperature wise. 

Wow, I can hardly believe that it is the nineteenth of January already.  We're over half way through this month already.  So far, it's been the start of a productive year for me.  How about you?  Have you gotten the jump on anything for 2013?

Today I ordered Christmas gifts for my Red Hat Ladies for next Christmas.  Hurrah!  Not only am I ahead of the game, but I also got great gifts at reduced prices.  You just can't beat that!  To make it even better than that, I paid for them with a credit which I had on one of my credit cards. 

I've spent quite a few hours this week working on my sequel novel, "Crafty-Cruise" With A Capital "C".  It 's a continuation of "Sassy" With A Capital "S". It can be read either with the first novel or separately. 

My husband gave me The Dragon for Christmas.  I don't quite have the knack of it, just yet, but I hope to soon.  I think it will save me time when doing my writing.  I have to buff up on the commands before I start using it in earnest.  Does anyone have one, and do you like it?

My Red Hat Lady Group came to my home today for a craft day.  We had a great time.  We all learned how to make coin purses/card cases out of duck tape.  It was quite easy and they all turned out great.  I fixed a lunch of cheesy broccoli soup and Tastefully Simple Cranberry and Orange Scones.  I made a spread to put on the scones.  For dessert, I used the Tastefully Simple Almond Pound Cake mix with chunky applesauce in place of the butter and I used one half cup of orange juice instead of water.  It turned out great. 

I was having a Tastefully Simple book show for my daughter, so that's why I treated the girls to Tastefully Simple products.  We all had a good time.  I so enjoy seeing my friends.  Each one of them is unique in their own way. 

Well, I'm a bit tired now, so I think I'll hang it up for now.  I hope you all have a wonderful weekend.
Susan

Just Get Back To It!

Hi all,

Can you guess from my title, what I need to get back to doing?  If you guessed the answer is writing, you would be correct.  It's been at least two days since I worked on my sequel and I really need to get motivated once again. 

I was asked a question today.  It was:  How do you get all the ideas for your stories?  How do you decide on where the characters are going to go or do?  I explained that I do some preplanning on where the storyline is going and what some of the plots will be about.  I do most of my research ahead of time so I don't have to take the time to stop and research something when I'm on a roll. 

I start using an empty folder.  One with at least four or five pocket pages inside.  That way, I can store all my research in one place.  I also make a character list, any pertinent names that will be used as the story progresses and any other information that will be used over and over as the story moves along.  I type them up and print a copy so I can keep it in my folder along with everything else. 

Doing this will save you time when you come to a spot where you can't remember a particular name or place or some other fact that you've used earlier in the story.  I also type up a character sheet with all the basic facts about each person in the story.  This also saves time later.  I do a separate sheet for each character and her/his family in the book.  This way I can add on any new information as I go along.  It also is a good tool if you are planning on doing a sequel novel using the same group of characters. 

Before I really got started writing the book, I purchased the bar code and ISBN number.  I would have also taken care of obtaining the copyright, but you can't do that until the book is finished.  That's because you need to mail them a copy of the finished book before they will issue you a copyright.  That doesn't make a lot of sense to me, but then nobody asked me.  Just my opinion! 

I hope to get the story flowing once again, on my book "Crafty-Cruise" Wtih A Capital "C".  I haven't exactly planned out the ending for this story yet.  But that will come soon enough. 

Whatever you do, whatever makes you feel good about yourself, just do it!  Use those talents that God has given you to bring some good into this world.  Take care and happy thoughts!
Susan

Praise God From Whom All Good Things Come!

Hi all,

Today, of course, is Sunday.  The day for taking time out of our busy lives to thank God for all the blessings He's bestowed on us.  I don't know about anyone else, but I, personally, thank Him every day for He has truly blessed me with the gift of life.

Have you ever wondered what your purpose is in this life?  Why were you allowed to have a safe birth, when so many other babies are either still born or don't even make it to the delivery stage, but are lost by miscarriage?  Why are you still alive today, at whatever age you may be, when every day on the news we hear of children, teens and young adults being killed or dying of natural causes?  Why are you still alive at the age of sixty, seventy or even eighty?  Check the obituaries for the ages of the people who die every day in your city.  They range from infants to the elderly.

Now you're probably asking yourself, just what is her point!  Well, I'm going to tell you what my point is.  I believe that from the moment of inception, God has a plan for each of us.  Some will live many years while others will die at a young age.  I also believe that sometimes God changes that plan according to what He feels is right for us individually. 

By this, I mean that as we develop in body, spirit, intelligence, physically and mentally, we adjust our purpose in living.  Perhaps, in the beginning of our lives, He really doesn't have it mapped out yet, but chooses rather to wait to see what type of person, both mentally, physically and morally we become. 

As you well know, God doesn't make us sick, either physically or mentally.  We, starting from Adam and Eve, chose to do what we wanted, apart from what God's plan was for us.  So, had they not made that choice, there would not have been any physical or mental illness.  We asked to be free to make our own decisions, and now, when something goes wrong, we choose to blame God.  Why?  He just  gave us what we wanted! 

I truly believe that there should be some special 'purpose' for each of our lives.  We were all given talents and an intellect.  Whether we use them for good is entirely up to us.  I believe this world would be a better place to live in, if each of us tried being a little kinder, a bit more pleasant and smiled more.  Instead we growl at everyone, we'll go out of our way to be unkind to people, and some of us never crack a smile.  How sad that this world has come to this! 

How do we change it?  That's a good question, one that I do not have an answer for right now.  I suppose it starts with one person at a time.  I try to put on a smile, even for a stranger.  I try to reach out to those who need a friend, someone to talk with.  I try to be kind to other people and to myself.  I believe that if we practice these things with ourselves and our families, eventually we will begin passing this behavior on to every person we meet.  It's worth a try, don't you think so?

Well, I do wish each of you a wonderful Sunday.  I pray that God blesses every person who reads this today and helps you to 'pass it on'.  I'm sure you've all heard that expression:  "pass it on".  If not, it means to pass on to someone else something good that's been done or given to you. 

God has truly blessed me and today I'm 'passing it on' to you.  God bless you!
Susan

It Was A Great Feeling!

Hi all,
Have you ever done something you love to do and in doing so, perhaps helped someone else?  Today was the day I was invited to speak to some of the students at York Catholic High School.  I admit, I was a bit nervous at first, but it soon went away. 

So, not only did I get to share some information with these young people about writing, whether it's writing a novel, a journal, for a newspaper, as a journalist, poetry, for a magazine or for any other reason, but I had fun doing it.  That's because writing is all part of my 'creative' passion. 

I thought perhaps they'd have more questions than they did, but the librarian, Ms, Murphy, said she didn't expect them to ask too many questions.  I know that's typical of teens when having a conversation with an adult, especially an old one like me.  I did make some of them smile and that makes me happy because I knew they were listening to me. 

It was a very good experience for me as a writer and as an alumni of YCHS.  Many thank to Ms. Murphy for giving me this wonderful opportunity. 

How was your day?  Did you do anything that you love to do today?  I surely hope you did and if you haven't, there's still time this evening.  Go for it!   

Tomorrow is Saturday and it's to be a fairly warm day here in York, Pa. for January.  My husband and some of his friends are going out golfing tomorrow.  The weatherman says it's to be cloudy all day, but temps up in the low fifties.  I hope he enjoys himself.  It makes me happy when he gets to do some of the things he loves to do and golfing is one of them.

As far as my plans for tomorrow, they're not carved in stone at this point, but I believe I will go up to my craft room and work on a few more of my hand made greeting cards.  I'm off to a great start, but I have so many to make between now and November.  You know, birthday cards, Mother's Day cards, Father's Day cards, Valentine's Day cards, get well cards, etc.  You get the picture.  The only cards I won't start crafting now is 2013's Christmas cards.  I usually wait until November to start them.  That process takes up quite a bit of my time, as I make approximately seventy of them.  Once again, it's doing something that I love to do, so I enjoy every moment of it. 

Tomorrow afternoon, I'm planning on working on my sequel novel, Crafty-Cruise With A Capital "C".  It will be nice and quiet here so I won't have any distractions.  At least, that's my plan as of right now.

I'm a little tired this evening, so I'm going to sign off for tonight.  Don't forget to do something you love to do, to complete your day!
Susan

I'm Getting Ready!

Hi all,

What are you ready to do, anything interesting?  I am getting prepared to visit York Catholic High School on Friday.  I have been invited to be a quest speaker on writing.  To be honest, I'm a bit nervous.   I'll be speaking with groups of teenagers so, perhaps I shouldn't be too stressed, as I know how quickly they can tune out an adult.  I'm hoping I can keep them interested. 

I would imagine that one of the questions they will want to ask is if I make a lot of money from my writing.  I'm sure they will be very disappointed when I share with them that I don't write to make money.  Sure, it helps to break even, but that's not what's important to me. 

I suppose if I had started writing seriously back when I was young, then things might be different.  I certainly am not rich, but we get by with what we have.  As far as I'm concerned, I have everything that I need to survive:  a home to live in, enough food to eat, sufficient money to pay our bills, a wonderful family and great friends.  We have enough money to have a trailer, and I have to say a very nice trailer at that, on a permanent site in a campground.  We have gone on two cruises and we get to do some very nice things.  So, I don't need the money to make me happy, I am very contented and happy with my life just the way it is now. 

I suppose if you knew me, you'd maybe ask how that could be true, since I have Chronic Congestive Heart Failure and a very weak heart.  I refuse to allow myself to sit and feel sorry for myself or to play the 'woo is me card'!  Okay, from time to time it gets me down, but I refuse to allow it to take control of my life. 

So, I feel very humble to have been asked to be a guest author and speaker at York Catholic this Friday.  If I can touch just one young person with my experiences, then I will be a happy lady.  I truly believe that doing whatever you love, using your God given talents, whatever they may be, is what God wants us to do.  It's what I try to do everyday and will continue to do for the rest of my life, however long or short that may be. 

So, wish me luck for Friday morning with these young students.  It sure was a very, very long time since I was a student at York Catholic.  It's going on  forty-seven years since I graduated from there.  Boy, that's a long time ago!  It was probably before most of those students parents were even born.  Now I really feel old!

On that note, I think I'll close for tonight.  My best regards to all my faithful readers.  I'd love to read some of your comments, if you care to leave any. 
Susan

It's Just Slipping By So Fast!

Hi all,

How's everyone today?  It's been a very peaceful and quiet Saturday here in York, PA.  My husband went to watch one of our Grandsons play in a high school basketball game, while I stayed home.  I don't know about you, but I have a very hard time pushing myself to go outside on cold windy days.  It seems that the older I get, I more of a home body I become.  This is especially true during the winter months. 

Wow, I just can't believe how fast January is flying by.  I suppose most people have already cleaned up all their Christmas decorations and packed them all away until Christmas 2013.  I know that's eleven and one half months away, but as you well know, it will come with the blink of a eye. 

I didn't do any writing on my novel today, but I did work on some of my 2013 handmade greeting cards.  I created seven of them and it took me about five hours or so to complete all of them.  I love creating different styles of greeting cards.  I admit that my cards are getting more complex all the time, but I see these new designs and I can't wait to try them.  I suppose that's how creative people are.  What do you think?  Are you creative and if so, what do you do?

I try to keep myself occupied as much as I can.  Sometimes, I am just too tired to create anything.  I just need to chill out and vegetate for a period of time.  Today I watched a couple of old movies staring Dick Van'Dyke and his son and Grandson.  They were from 2008, so I've mostly forgotten what they were about.  What kind of movies do you prefer to watch on television?  I like all different kinds, but I don't particularly care for 'shoot 'em out' Rambo types. 

Tomorrow is Sunday.  I have no plans, except for taking some time to keep Sunday holy and to praise God for all He has given me.  The bible says, "and on the seventh day He rested."  So, I suppose that's why we all prefer to rest some on Sundays, at least I do.

I hope the rest of your weekend is wonderful!
Susan

Can You Believe It?

Hi all,

Can you believe that today is the third of January, 2013, already!  It seems like it was just a short time ago that we were talking about Christmas coming.  I don't know about anyone else, but it seems that I never have enough time to do all the things I'd like to do.  Which I think is odd, seeing how I lead a very sedentary lifestyle now.

I went for groceries this morning and, as I so often do, I saw a gentleman who is the husband of a very good friend from years ago.  So, I sat down on the bench and chatted with him for a few minutes while I rested up from my walking around the grocery store.  It's hard to believe that I met his wife way back when my daughters were in grade school.  (My daughters are now all in their forties).  My how the time does fly. 

I am doing what I love to do, what is most important to me, what makes me feel good about myself.  How about you?  Do you have time to do something for yourself?  Something that makes you feel good about yourself?  If you don't, you need to make the time!  Everyone of us needs to take a few minutes each day to be quiet, to do some deep breathing exercises and to un-stress ourselves.  If ten minutes a day is all you can give yourself, then that's better than nothing.  Just do it!

I caught a few minutes of Dr. Oz on television the other day and his guest was showing him some free apps. that are available on your phone or on your computer, that are breathing exercises.  Check out Dr. Oz's web page to see if you can find the link.  I'm sure it will be worthwhile. 

I have been working on writing my novel quite a bit lately.  It's moving along quite nicely.  Yesterday my Financial Advisor called me to let me know how much he's enjoying reading my "Sassy" With A Capital "S" book.  He said he doesn't usually like 'ladies' books, but he is enjoying mine.  He also suggested that I write a murder mystery next time.  I told him I'd have to think about that.

My daughter, Angel, has agreed to draw a picture to go with the novel I'm working on now.  She's very good with art, but she doesn't use her talents very often.  So, I gave her a proposition she couldn't refuse.  Besides, I really didn't want to take the time to draw the picture myself, since it's quite involved.  I want a picture of eight older ladies on the deck of a cruise ship to go with my book, "Crafty-Cruise" With A Capital "C".   I know she can do it, she just needs a gentle push from her Mom!

Well, I do hope you take a few minutes for yourself every day.  It's a very important step to happiness and contentment.
Susan

Today is Wednesday, or is it?

Hi all,

I'm having a hard time remembering what day of the week it is.  Is anyone else having the same problem?  I suppose that I won't get back on schedule until next Monday.  Oh well, I guess I could have worse things to worry about, now couldn't I?

Yesterday and today I've spent time working on my sequel novel.  I had to spend some time refreshing my memory so I'd know where I was at in it.  That being done, my writing is moving right along again.  That makes me happy.

Today I wrote my first check for 2013.  Surprise, surprise, I remembered to write 2013 and not 2012.  That's quite an accomplishment for me, as I usually am writing the old year for a few months.  How about you?  Have you written the wrong year in the past two and one half days?

If anyone received a Kindle for Christmas, you can purchase an electronic copy of any of my three books at:  www.amazon.com/susanlappmellott.
 
They are:  Sassy With A Capital 'S'   - adult nonfiction novel
                 The Secret in the Claw Feet Box  -   Children's fiction novel (ages 8 - 12)
                 Congestive Heart Failure:  Changing Lives  -  Nonfiction booklet

I hope you'll stop by Amazon and download one of them. 

Susan