Gina G writes

  The Writers Journey Here is how it goes. After one hour of procrastination, I pull up the manuscript and check where I left off. I read my notes about what I want to achieve. I am generally a "Pantser" when it comes to writing until I get to the middle; then, I become almost a "Plotter." Time to look at pets up for adoption. Or do the elliptical? No! It is writing time. Focus. Where did I leave off? I finish my glass of wine and make some tea.  Many people think that when you write, you simply sit down, and everything comes out perfect. This is not true. We would like it to be true, but it isn't. I can honestly say I have spent the past three weeks rewriting the chapter I am in. First, I reviewed what I had written and checked it for continuity. Were all the characters there? Was the setting correct? Whose point of view was I in? For this chapter, I changed the point of view six times. I had it in Jim's, changed it to Shelly's, changed it to Sam's,...

  The Alphabet Book Challenge:  A One of my New Year's Resolutions is to check out books from the library. I decided to search for book authors alphabetically. I would make a day of picking out the right book and treating myself to a coffee while I read.  The first two books I picked were "Her Name Was Rose" by Claire Allan and "Silence Is A Sense" by Layla Alammar. Both books passed the blurb test, the first line, the first paragraph, and the first page test.  I started with Her Name Was Rose. The story had a good idea: A mousy, neurotic woman witnesses a woman get hit by a car. She finds out the woman's name and stalks her social network sites, reading about her former perfect life. The woman applies for the dead woman's former job. She freshens up her look and tries to be more like the woman who died. Before you know it, the husband comes along, and one thing leads to another. But everything is not as perfect as the woman imagined. In fact, it appears...

  I know the holidays are over, but I wanted to take a moment to give a few hints to those who will be shopping next year for their wives/girlfriends. These hints are not only for the holidays but for birthdays, anniversaries, and special days. When shopping for clothes, shoes, handbags, jewelry, or perfume ... take a moment to go through your significant other's closet. Note the colors she likes to wear. Check out the styles. Are there particular brands she enjoys? Does she have a lot of flower prints? Strips? Polka dots? Is she more casual with denim pants and tee-shirts or dressier with slacks and dresses?  Is she a purse collector? If so, take a picture of her purses. This will give the salesperson an idea of what "type" of handbag she likes. Also, the style. There are many. Does she carry a wallet?  Does she have a particular brand she is fond of? What size handbag does she prefer? A clutch size, or a large one with everything in it. Go through her jewelry and help h...

 Christmas 2024 versus Christmas in the Trenches This has been a not-so-happy, up-and-down, try-to-survive month. It is the first Christmas since 1989 that I have spent without a dog. Thankfully, my cat Fish has stepped up and been very snuggly. It is an adjustment month. On the one hand, there isn't dog hair collecting everywhere, and I don't have to let the dog out to go potty or clean up any accidents in the house. On the other hand, I don't have to let the dog out to go potty or clean up her hair. As I said, it's an adjustment. And I am not the only one going through this. My cousin lost her dog. Several of my friends have lost their pets this year, and I just found out a dear Uncle of mine has passed away. So much for the season of perpetual joy. Now let's add into this mix of adjustment, grief, and jolly ho, ho, ho, crap, taking a fall which resulted in smacking my face and a light sprain to my left ankle. I think life wants me to slow down. Or something. I fi...

 Misty Mae Misty came into my life five days after my beloved Peyton passed away from cancer. He was my show Afghan. His breeder contacted me and let me know she had a female I could have for the cost of airfare. How could I say no? I drove to Vegas and picked her up. She was scared, barking, eyes wide, and shaking in a claims area. I took her out of the travel crate and hugged her.  I dedicated the song Yellow and Sparks by Coldplay to her and sang them to her as we drove home. Afghan hound puppies look like little lambs when they are young. They have long feet, a long nose, and short, fuzzy hair. Misty was a blonde domino color. She had white diamonds around her eyes, two white patches on her shoulders, and white markings on her legs. She was a very serious puppy who would stop and sit while she figured things out. She loved to chew on shoes, furniture, and anything left on the floor.  Unlike Peyton, who slept next to me, Misty would sleep on the floor, on her dog bed, ...

 2024 Election I was hoping for better results. I was hoping for a woman to finally step into the role of President and lead. Instead, we went with the felon. Is this because people fear what a woman could do with the Presidency? Is it because Biden screwed up, and everyone was worried she would follow and support his policies? I don't know. What's done is done. The American people voted and the results swung a different way.  What I have noticed, though, on this day of results, is we did not have riots. We did not have protests. We did not have people screaming that the voting count was cheated. We did not demand a recount and stomp our feet, raise guns, and threaten to take democracy back. No, we mourned the loss.  Vice President Harris accepted the defeat with grace, strength, and dignity. She promised a smooth transition. She didn't call for revenge. She didn't rant and rave, point fingers, and make accusations. She reacted with class. She is an inspiration of hope ...