Games: Old School or Online?

I found this pic somewhere online yesterday and it gave me such a giggle. And it also made me sigh wistfully for games I used to play as a kid. Yep, I could seriously entertain myself with a rock, or a pile of rocks. (Don’t judge me. I’m a writer; we’re all a little weird.)  And remember board games that you’d dig out of the closet and the whole family would gather around and shake the dice and climb up ladders, or buy a railroad, or ever remove the funny bone?  Or family was big on games when we were kids. Some of my best memories take me back to putting puzzles together with my mom.

Board games are still popular, but a lot of them are played online nowadays.  The cool way I connect with my grown kids lately?  We play Words With Friends and Hanging With Friends.  We usually keep the games going steadily, making numerous moves daily. They’re not sitting across the table from me—which I would prefer—but I still get a motherly twinge of connection by signing in to the iPad and checking out their next moves.

Are online games a new way of connecting? If we can’t get together with family, I like the fact that with a few keystrokes I can make some kind of personal contact.  And there’s always the need for me to play games so my brain doesn’t wither in my old age.  ;-)

What about you and your family? Do you still have the luxury of getting together over a board game, or have you discovered the fun in playing electronically? And what games are keeping your brain sharp?

Michele

ps – who will glad match anyone in Words With Friends or Hanging.  Find me by searching FB for michelehauf

Maggie Shayne, Vampire Writer on Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter

Welcome my fellow Story Garden author, RITA winner and NYT bestseller, Maggie Shayne!

Writer Seth Grahame-Smith is a freaking genius.  First he comes up with PRIDE AND PREJUDICE AND ZOMBIES, and then he tops it with ABRAHAM LINCOLN, VAMPIRE HUNTER.  I’m just on my knees worshiping the guy while uttering the phrase every writer knows is the highest compliment we are capable of giving to our competition-er-collegues; “I wish to hell I’d thought of it first.”

And I do.

I was just a little thing when I first began my love affair with vampires and monsters of all things that go bump in the night, mostly those made famous in the 30′s, 40′s and 50′s by Universal Studios. (No, I am not that old, but film never dies.)  My siblings read Archie comics, and I read Horror.  My love of the macabre showed up when, in third grade, my teacher let us each choose which story she would read aloud to the class that week, and when it was my turn, I picked Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart. And then recited the opening lines along with her.  From memory.  I was ten.  Yeah.  Mom got a note home.

Anyway, my only complaint about those classic horror flicks I loved was that the monster clearly deserved to get the girl.  (No, not GET the girl as in eviscerate her, but get the girl in the romantic sense.) I mean, who would want Jonathon Harker when she could have had the mysterious Count Dracula?  The Wolfman was doomed to murder the woman he loved, unless he died first. The Mummy returned from the crypt to reunite with the reincarnation of his soulmate.  Even the Gill-Monster was smitten, at heart.  These guys weren’t bad, they were just twitterpated.  And every one of those early films we called horror, were no more than thinly disguised love stories with tragic endings.  Clearly their writers didn’t understand the rules of romance.  Love always wins out, even over death.  I’ve made my career setting that right.  In my books, the monsters always get the girl.  In the good way.

But now I’m thinking I need to jump onto this new notion with all due haste, so I need your help.  We must think up more of these premises like Abraham Lincoln, Vampire Hunter.  Because it looks like Seth Grahame-Smith and Tim Burton, who is turning his novel into a major motion picture, are about to do for our 16th president, what Robert Downey Jr. has done for Sherlock Holmes.  (And I love what Robert Downey Jr. has done for Sherlock Holmes!)

I’ve been racking my brain, and here’s what I’ve come up with so far.  Read this in your head, in the voice of everyone’s favorite movie trailer voice-over guy.  I know you know who I mean.  You don’t, okay, wait, read this phrase…  “In a world….”
Got it now?  Good.  Here goes.

Idea 1.  In a world with too little compassion, she fed the starving, clothed the naked, sheltered the homeless–but when they tried to eat her flesh all bets were off.  Mother Theresa as you’ve never seen her before, in ZOMBIE-KILLER, THE HOLY TERROR

Idea 2.Judy Garland reprises her role as Dorothy Gale in this blockbuster sequel. When a pack of lycanthropes set their sites on innocent little Toto, only one girl can take them down: (Cue close up on sparkly red shoes and the butt of a rifle.  See Dorothy cock the rifle with that extra loud CLACK CLACK sound effect of the gun’s action working.) THE WEREWOLVES OF OZ.  This time, it’s personal.

Idea 3.You knew her as the First Lady who staunchly supported her husband’s “New Deal,” but you never knew the secret life she led for her country.  In a world where sometimes, you have to go rogue to get things done, Eleanor Roosevelt is, UNDERCOVER NINJA ASSASIN.  The CIA got nothing on this kick-ass chick.

That’s all I got.    And lest you think I was kidding about the vampire hunter movie, here’s a link to the trailer. It’s definitely on my Must-See list.

If you’re curious about me and my monsters, you can find more info on my web site, on Facebook, blogging solo at Shayne’s Shenanigans, and blogging with a group at Story Broads.  On Twitter @Maggieshayne, I mostly post writing news and positive thinking/Law of attraction stuff.

Thanks bunches to the Riding with the Top Down gang for having me over today.  I love it here.

Make ‘Em Laugh…or something

It probably comes as no surprise that I love a good quote. As you may know, at the beginning of each chapter of my mystery series, I write a little dialogue from someone in Chrissy’s crazy universe. It’s been one of the most entertaining things about writing the series, and in so doing I’ve really learned to appreciate a well-turned phrase. I make most of them up and attribute them to one of my fictional characters, but occasionally I’ll find a timeless little tidbit from a real life person and use that. I’ve enjoyed this process so much, that when I decided to give Chrissy her own facebook page (thanks for the suggestion Leanne, you’re a genius) I’ve continued with the quotes. Not everyday, of course. I mean, there has to be room for pics of under-dressed men with fuzzy animals and smart *ss remarks about the world at large, but now and then I’ll come across a fun little zinger that I need to share. Here are a few of my recent favorites:

“Hate your job? There’s a support group for that. It’s called everybody, and they meet at the bar.” Author unknown

“A word to the wise ain’t necessary – it’s the stupid ones that need the advice.”

Bill Cosby

“Behind every great man is a woman rolling her eyes.”

Jim Carrey

“Between two evils, I always pick the one I never tried before.”

Mae West

“Go to Heaven for the climate. Hell for the company.”
Mark Twain

“Guilt: the gift that keeps on giving.”

Erma Bombeck

“I like long walks, especially when they are taken by people who annoy me.”

Fred Allen

“I never expected to see the day when girls would get sunburned in the places they now do.”

Will Rogers

“My theory is that all of Scottish cuisine is based on a dare.”
Mike Myers

“When I was a boy the Dead Sea was only sick.”

George Burns

So how about you? Heard anything lately that tickled your funny bone or made you think things you’d never thunk before?

http://www.amazon.com/Uncorked-Chrissy-McMullen-Mysteries-ebook/dp/B006QXOAB0/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326404170&sr=1-1

Stamina. Got none. Help.

So, I’ve been trying to move around more this year.  I’m trying not to be a total slug.  No big deeds, just walking about a mile, doing a few machines when I go to the health club with my husband.  My goal is 3x a week.  My hubby and I walked about a mile (in the sleet) yesterday.  I have visited the pool area of the gym twice.

By that, I mean the first time I walked to the pool area and looked at it from the window.  The second time, I actually walked inside the area and looked at it for a half-moment.  Then I exited.  I have it on good authority that people who swim in this pool occasionally pee in it.  Eww.  I can honestly say I do not pee in the pool.    I physically cannot do it.  My Mama taught me to only go in the pot.  I have to struggle to go in the ocean! Knowing that others DO pee in the pool doesn’t make me want to put my face in that pool.  That said, swimming is great for building stamina.  I know this because of the many summers I went swimming as a child at the community pool then came home and needed a nap.

I have purchased a cap (so I don’t have to wash my hair all the time), ear plugs and goggles, but I still kinda feel like I need a condom for my head if I should put my head in the water.

Help me get over my germophobia!   How do I force myself to put my face in pee water!!!!  Or how do YOU build your stamina?!!

xo,

Leanne

Make-Up Names. . . Beyond the Pale!

I am confused. Okay that’s not an abnormal state of affairs these days, but this is a new wrinkle. I went to Ulta the other day (massive beauty products store, for those of you who don’t live in blessed regions of the country!) looking for a little eye liner. I staggered out two hours later with a bag in one hand and my illusions in the other.

Once upon a time beauty products were named and packaged to give a air of elegant or comfort or beauty, or just downright sexiness. Not anymore, folks! A fresh new brand of warped creativity has hit the cosmetics counter. Crazy names, even crazier packaging.

Urban Decay is a whole line of cosmetics packaged with post-apocalyptic flair. Crumblilng brick and rusty metal and graffiti are a few of their themes. Then there’s Ed Hardy. . . even the most out-of-touch grannies have seen the tattoo-esque art with skulls, hearts, and chains on his products. Strictly hard riding leather influence. . . which apparently sells like hot cakes. I saw a toddler at the mall that same day wearing an Ed Hardy t-shirt with a skull and hearts on it. Can Armegeddon be far behind?

But the color names of cosmetics have changed big-time, too. They stared out cute and funky. . . OPI was famous for it’s whimsical color names: Chocolate Shake-speare, Crepes Suzette, Dusk Over Cairo, Las Vegas Strip Poker, London Bridge is Falling Brown, Royal Flush Blush, Greece Just Blue Me Away, and my personal favorite: Nice Color, Eh?. But now it’s gone way beyond the cute, and even suggestive color names– from smirk all the way to “huh?” and “ewwwww!” Take a gander:
Pussy Pucker – lip balms – Nice Melons, Plain Ol’ Prude
Asphyxia – eye shadow (shudder)
Acid Rain – eye shadow
Half Baked – eye shadow (probably obvious on anyone wearing it)
Roach – eye shadow
Chicken Poop – lip balm– really!

I don’t care what color it is, or how yummy it smells, I am never putting Chicken Poop on my lips!

On the bright side, there is a fresh new wave of advertising and packaging that speaks ultra-realism. . . almost to the edge. BED HEAD. . . a whole line of products that are not exactly cheap. Hair wax. Not to take off hair on body parts, but to make hair stand up straight or stick out. . . most of which I’ve spent a lifetime avoiding in my toilette routine. Then there are products like MORE HAIR that promise greater fullness and the illusion of–you guessed it–MORE HAIR. And finally, one of my favorites: Helmet Head– a hairspray they could use to glue heat tiles on the bottom of space shuttles. After a day wearing it, my head bounces on the pillow when I climb into bed. Not kidding! Radical truth in advertising! Who knew?

I’m starting a collection of weird cosmetic and beauty product names. So have you see any lately that made you want to go “Whaaa?”

Share some with me and I’ll reward a loyal commentor with some Nail Envy from OPI! Or if you have a cosmetics story of your own, spill. I’ve got plenty of nail polish remover!

Debra: Click

This week is about things “clicking” into place.  Heaven help me, I’m leaving on an extended trip Saturday morning.  I’ll be outside the country without cell service.  My cell company does not offer cell phone service in Tanzania.  I’ll have wireless in the evenings…probably.  But only on the laptop.

Our Operations Manager is gearing up to cover the essentials on my desk as well as her work.  Our Marketing Assistant will try and pick up the slack as will some of the other folks in the office.  But this all seemed so much more “doable” last year.  And even two days ago.

But tonight, about 36 hours away from the airport run…I’m thinking, “What were you thinking?!”  (The exclamation point was for Kathy who has a thing about exclamation points.  In this case, the point was deserved!)

Obviously I’m in no good shape to write a cogent blog.  So I thought I’d amuse you with some of my epiphany moments of the week as information clicked into place as my top level brain worked my daily life and the subconscious worked my vacation life.

1)  ::click::  62″ is the largest dim (Length/height/width added together) without an excess size charge.  The charge is $175.  I got a longer duffle at the last minute when deciding between the two online.  (Rolling duffles are supposed to be better in the Land Rovers.)  Better measure the rolling duffle I bought… just in case.  The size?  67″  Needless to say my “new” new rolling duffle (High Sierra) which came overnight today is now within the size restriction. 

2)  ::click::  What shoes is my sister wearing on the plane?  If she’s wearing clown shoes (Crocs) then I can, too, and just pack the tennis shoes.  Crocs are easier to kick off and on, plus I have the specialty support ones.  “Hey, Lori.  What shoes are you wearing on the plane?”

3)  ::click::  We do have two professional photographers in our group, but I could be bored to death watching them get shots, which they’ll share with us.  I’d better get a new camera with big zoom and wide angle so I’ll have something to do.  It might be rude to knit and read while in the savannah.  (Nikon Coolpix 500)

4)  ::click::  You really have to read the manual on the camera and figure out how to use all the fancy buttons and modes.

5)  ::click::  If my sister is having second thoughts on the small plane back from the savannah to the big airport, that means you’ll be the only one flying back from the wild.  Isn’t that just prima donna behavior?  Better cancel that flight and ride back in the rumbly, dust filled truck when you could have been at the hotel in the shower.  ::sigh::

6)  ::click::  Hey!  If I’m not riding in the truck, then I don’t have a 32 lb weight limit on luggage.  Huzzah!  I can pack another Harry Potter audio book.

7)  ::click::  Field guides are really heavy.  Even not-big ones. Why did you buy two?  How hard is it to figure out, “Giraffe, lion, hippo, bird….”

8)  ::click::  A perfectly adorable hat is not going to magically arrive.  You will have to make a decision:  ball cap or go-to-hell hat.

9)  ::click::  You must stop.  You have a blog to write and you have to begin the packing process. Turn off the computer.  Call it a day.  If it’s not done now it’s not getting done until you get back.

10)  ::click::  Is everything washed?

11)  ::click::  Strap in.  This is going to be a bumpy ride!

Root canal equals aquarium? Say what?

Oh boy. You’re going to love this story. In November I cracked a tooth. LOONNGGG story short – there was the root canal, the infection, the drilling, the filling, the temporary crown, the infection (again), the final permanent crown. Lots of dental visits. Lots of shots in my poor jaw. Lots of fun and games. And finally, last week, my jaw told me it had had enough. I ended up with partial facial paralysis (and pain … lots of pain, folks) due to severe nerve inflammation. Thank goodness it was temporary and it’s all better now – honestly – but a funny thing happened on the way to getting better.

Prednisone should come with a warning label – do not make major purchases while taking this medication. That’s right. Doc gave me a steroid injection to help with the inflammation and put me on a prednisone burst. Let me tell you how I react to large doses of prednisone. I get CRAZY!!

Here’s the proof.  Last Saturday afternoon (in full prednisone euphoria) found me in my car, in a slushy snow storm, driving 40 miles to a pet store because I had decided that I could not live another moment without an aquarium. Holy mother.

Now I am the proud (and growing skeptical) owner of a 30 gallon fresh water tropical fish aquarium that I’m rapidly finding out is NOT merely an observational pastime. It’s a hobby folks. A labor intensive, high maintenance, chemical balance issue filled hobby.  But – oh, is it beautiful!

So, let yourself be warned. Don’t drink and drive, don’t drive and text, and for goodness sake, don’t make any major purchases while taking prednisone. LOL.

Lest you think I jest – here are photos.

The big picture

 

side view

 

Notice my little snorklers in the tank? )

 

and my little mermaids?

Okay. so they’re all cut out photos of the grandkids but they’re cute right? LOL

Buddy is enthralled

Granted, the tank is already beautiful (and will be even more beautifuller ) when I get it fully stocked) but did the Gerard household really need a tank full of fish in addition to the dog, the two cats and the 3 horses? I think not. But I thought that thought far after I slid the plastic card through the little charge machine thingy )

On another note:  Thank you all for going out and buying Last Man Standing and shooting it way up on the New York Times Best-seller lists.  Thanks to you, LMS hit the Times Mass Market paperback list, the combined hardcover/mm list, the e-book list and the e-book/mm combo list.  A quadruple score!  It’s so exciting.

I also want to bring your attention to a fantastic new short story collection: THRILLER 3: LOVE IS MURDER which is available for preorder now on both B&N and Amazon

It’s a WOW collection of short stories (edited by Sandra Brown) and written by some of the hottest thriller writers in the business.  For instance: Lee Child, Debra Webb, Allison Brennan, Robert Browne, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Andrea Kane … the amazing list goes on and on.  And oh yeah – I was invited to write a story for the collection too. ) I think you’ll all enjoy catching up with Johnny Duane Reed and Crystal (Tink) Debrowski (Whisper No Lies) in the action packed Dying To Score which finds them on the run and in bad trouble in the jungles of Guatemala.

Okay.  Back to my ‘prednisone purchase’.  How about you all? Anyone out there ever make an impulsive purchase they later regretted or semi regretted and if so was it drug (let’s stick with the legal stuff) induced or just a ‘what was I thinking?’ moment?  And if anyone out there has a freshwater aquarium, I’m all ears when it comes to tips.  I already love my little fishies and I want to keep them healthy and happy.