Season’s Eatings

Posted on October 24, 2018 by Linda Andrews

Given that we are heading into the season of sharing food and drink with family and friends, for the first time ever, I’ve made Conceived in Blood free across most platforms.

Warning: the book contains graphic violence, swearing, and cannibals playing with their food.

Enjoy!

Conceived in Blood

ConceivedinBloodcover

The end is over. The beginning is near. A civilized woman is about to meet a tribe who see her as food. In this battle for survival, will she be the winner or the dinner?
A hundred years after radiation spewed across the planet, the life on Earth is heading for extinction. And one woman is determined to stop it. This prodigal daughter leaves the safety of her home to unite the tribes of man. But the allies she finds will use her for their own selfish desires:
A raider will fight to complete his bloody mission.
A grandfather desperate to save his sick granddaughter will do anything to get her medical treatment.
A mother will make a horrible choice just to survive.
And a hoard of cannibals will jockey for their next meal.

But the deadliest enemy is closer than she imagines, and a conspiracy could spell her death or worse.

Now Available:

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The Gloves are off

Posted on October 22, 2018 by Linda Andrews

We were supposed to get rain yesterday. We had sprinkles at 3:30 in the morning but then it was sunshine and occasional clouds.

So the hubbinator and I went to the home improvement store to purchase some plants for our side yard.

We ended up getting drought tolerant grasses, 2 that repelled mosquitoes, two that had purple flowers (for the bees), and one that had red flowers on stalks (for the hummingbirds).

Then we spent the next hour digging out the grass to plant the grasses. Yeah, it makes perfect sense. The grass we dug out was for water hungry lawns; the stuff we planted expands into clumps and requires little water to thrive, which we hope with choke out the other grass making the area low maintenance.

While I was working, I kept getting bitten by ants. You see, I don’t usually like gardening with gloves on. Sure, when I’m spending lots of time raking, they prevent blisters, but otherwise…

Otherwise, I like to feel the dirt in my hands and touch the fragile leaves and shoots, or in the case of some of the grasses, get cut by them. Ah, well, there’s always a price to pay.

Until next time.

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Halloween Movies

Posted on October 19, 2018 by Linda Andrews

I’ve been binging on Halloween movies since September. I have to say I love them, even the bad ones.

I especially enjoyed Netflix’s rebooting of the Haunting of Hill House. Wonderfully done (although the Hubbinator didn’t like it as much as I did).

Then there are the classics: Legend of Sleepy Hallow, Sleepy Hallow, Hocus Pocus, Halloween… Well you get the idea.

but it wasn’t until Wednesday, when I came across another Halloween classic: Arsenic and Old Lace.

Yes, it is a Halloween movie.

And if you haven’t seen it in a while, pop it into the Blu-Ray player. I just love it when I rediscover old favorites.

Until next time.

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Get Stuffed

Posted on October 17, 2018 by Linda Andrews

We purchased a couch about a year ago and the cushions were hard as a rock. Over time, they softened, then stayed squished. It’s not very comfortable sitting on a slopping couch, so I decided to purchase new pads for the seats.

Easy-peasey right?

Well, kind of. Seems the cushions on the couch were 5.5 inches thick and the new padding was 4 inches thick. Thankfully, I was able to find some memory foam that served as a bed topper that made up the difference.

I spent most of Sunday cutting that foam to the desired size then stuffing the cushions. Which should have been the easy part, but it’s kind of like stuffing sausage by hand. I managed to get it done with a minimal amount of swearing (at least, for me) when I encountered a problem.

Isn’t that always the way?

Anyway, apparently, I broke the zipper on the last cushion. Kinda pulled it right out of one side then while I was attempting to fix it, I just pulled it out entirely.

Now, duct tape is my friend, but in this case, I used packing tape to keep it shut.

Which leaves me in a conundrum: do I fix the zipper or do I just make cushions that fold over, no zipper required?

Until next time.

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Why I’ll Never Be Rich

Posted on October 15, 2018 by Linda Andrews

I watch Antiques Roadshow. I love the show. The hubbinator and I like to guess how much things are worth.

And I’m usually wrong.

Really, really wrong on things that I don’t like or think are ugly.

Seems that those end up being the most valuable items on the show that evening. This is why I’ll never be rich. I’ll pass up that twisted piece of sculpture for a velvet Elvis and bam! There goes my retirement.

Ah, well. I’m rich in other ways.

And I am surrounded by things I like. So, I guess I’ll take that as a win. Riches aren’t confined to things, they’re most often found in people.

In the meantime, we’ll keep guessing. Right or wrong, it’s all fun.

Until next time.

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Taking it easy

Posted on October 12, 2018 by Linda Andrews

I’ve reached the quarter point in my latest novel.

I had hoped to be further along, but life and the day job and that sense of bleh keep getting in the way.

My critique partner says it’s the best thing I’ve ever written.

Part of me was like Yay!

But the other part of me was like shouldn’t the current work in progress always be the greatest thing an author has written? Shouldn’t I always be looking to improve my storytelling abilities?

But here in the real world, that isn’t always the case. Sometimes the things I learn, set me back not take me forward.

Writing is weird.

And hard. This book is hard to write because of the emotions I need to access to ‘bleed’ onto the page. After 50 works written, I thought it would get easier. It hasn’t, maybe because I know all the things I did wrong when I first started.

Ah well. I didn’t start writing because it was easy. Perversely, I write because it is hard because it challenges the little gray cells. Sometimes I just wish it was easier. Ah well, it’ll be worth it.

Until next time.

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Ride with me

Posted on October 10, 2018 by Linda Andrews

The weather is cool. The days are short. It’s fall. And, for Arizona, it came early. Yay!

After months of being cooped up inside and living like a vampire (only going out when it’s dark), there is finally an opportunity to get some Vitamin D. Usually this involves walks through the park, but we wanted to branch out without having to drive for miles.

So the hubbinator and I decided to purchase bicycles.

Beach cruisers as they’re called. The hubbinator wanted blue but all they had was black. I wanted green but it was $100 more. So we both got red bikes.

When I asked the hubbinator if this was how it starts, us getting matching everything, a passerby shouted “Don’t answer. It’s a trap.”

We picked them up yesterday, after walking about a mile to the store. Then rode them home.

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It has been years since I’ve ridden a bike. And with the handbrakes instead of the foot/pedal breaks I was concerned, I’d go over the handles. The guy at exhale bikes said it was unlikely to happen given the bike’s low center of gravity. I said I accepted the challenge and was sad that he underestimated my abilities.

I tested the brakes in the parking lot, near the haunted house, figuring if I did fall off I’d be a bloody mess and fit right in, so no one would know I was clumsy.

Alas that didn’t happen. Turns out riding a bike is exactly like riding a bike. I didn’t forget  how to do it, although I did have a wobbly start.

There was something the hubbinator and I noticed—the bikes had a lot more power than the standard cheapo bikes we’d purchased over the years. A lot more power. It was awesome.

Until next time.

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How Does this work

Posted on October 8, 2018 by Linda Andrews

Over the weekend, the hubbinator and I decided to check out a bbq place up the road from our house.

We’d seen the Naked BBQ pop up when we searched for restaurants nearby.

Our oldest two children beat us there.

And the food smelled heavenly. Which made it all the worse as they didn’t share.

So, after our grocery shopping/household errand adventures on Saturday, we decided to check it out.

We turned into the strip mall where it was supposed to be located only to find it hidden in the corner behind a donut shop.

It was after 1PM when we walked in and we both decided on the brisket sandwich. The hubbinator wanted fries but they served traditional bbq sides. So he ordered mac and cheese, and I had to potato salad (mustard/egg based).

There were pickled onions and pickles on the side. We were surprised that there wasn’t a sauce option but were up for the challenge.

The meat was amazingly tender and flavorful. The sides were good. I had to eat the hubbinator’s pickles because he didn’t like them. And they were fresh with that perfect bite of vinegar that hits you in the jaw.

We were about halfway through our meals when we noticed the bbq sauce dispenser next to the mustard. Doh! I added some of the hot to my sandwich while the hubbinator finished his naked. (Get it?)

Anyway, we’ll return and eat the bbq properly.

Until next time.

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Breast Cancer Awareness

Posted on October 5, 2018 by Linda Andrews

It started with my mother about a decade ago.

Last year, one of my sisters joined the club.

Two months ago, my aunt became a member.

They are ladies with breast cancer. My mom and sister are survivors. My aunt will be, too.

We don’t have the breast cancer gene in our family. Clearly, the absence of it doesn’t make you safer. We don’t have high-risk factors, but that was no protection.

The reason my family survived was because their cancer was caught early. I urge all of you to give yourself a monthly breast exam after your next period ends. And the next, and the next. And if you don’t have a period then find a point and stick to it.

I pray no one else gets breast cancer, but if you do may the odds be in your favor.

Until next time.

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Tea Time

Posted on October 3, 2018 by Linda Andrews

It’s been raining here for four days straight. Awesome. It actually feels kind of like fall with the temperatures in the high 80s.

So naturally, I think it’s time to switch to something warm to drink.

It started with a tin of tea that is probably about 17 years old. Yes, I used the tea bags. And the tea tasted great. Ditto with some loose tea from 5 years ago. Then I tried a musty box of apple cinnamon tea from last year. Bleh.

Then I set off on a search for some awesome tea to stock up on that wouldn’t lose its flavor within a year.

I’ll be restocking my supply of tea forte and searching for flavor temptations from Stash(?). I have a couple of rogue tea bags from Tapestry, and my sister hooked me up with this awesome blue raspberry tea from The Spice and Tea Exchange, a Portland company, that I will be exploring.

But for now, I’m visiting the Republic of Tea and their tea assortment. Which by far, Blueberry sage is my favorite.  I also ordered lemon chiffon (which tastes like cake batter) and Vanilla almond (which tastes like an almond cookie) and their Mango Ceylon which wasn’t as flavorful as the others. They did tempt me with a free Christmas tea bag but it wasn’t anything over the top special like the others. But they do have some Christmas variety packs that are on my list.

I see tea hoarding in my future:D

Until next time.

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