It was the most horrible yard attached to the most unattractive house. Most people would have sped along past this house as the river behind it appears to be doing. Miles upon miles of tranquil river beside the long winding road that followed along it, and as the car pulls over to the side of the road in front of that hideous house, you can see the water trying to escape its space. The boy in the back seat of the car could understand what the water knew and his oddly fascinated parents could not. The amount of coercion it took the parents of a growingly terrified boy, just to get him out of the car, and onto the lawn, would have been quite a site, if anything or anyone had been within miles of this house. Looking down the young boy could see nothing but a mass of poison ivy that crawled throughout the yard, where a normal house would have grass. There was nothing normal about this house, and the boy was at a loss for words, on the off chance that his parents were even listening. Dead center in the middle of the swarm of poison ivy stood a big hideous tree, that had spent centuries at least dominating this spot in the middle of nowhere. Strange old ropes hung from the largest branch, like once there was a swing, but in this scenario it could have been the noose to hang the old owner from. The boy looked past the ropes to the river, the strange river that hit maximum speed from where there wasn’t even a ripple. It was very intimidating, despite all else that seems to be so horrible in this spot. The last sign the boy had seen was the one that said Selinsgrove and before that he had seen one that had said Shamokin Dam, which coincidentally was where his parents had stopped to get pizza. They seemed so normal back then, all 30 minutes ago, as they drank an elixir called “birch beer” and ate pepperoni pizza. Now they are in the middle of nowhere for no reason, standing in front of the ugliest old house, in the worst lawn, under the shadow of a dark and scary tree. Yeah the boy was quite convinced that the river had the right idea as it tried to escape this place as he wished he could. Dragged along by one arm, the boy starts realizing that he probably had seen the best of this house, the minute his parents got him inside of it. The paint hung from the ceiling like moldy bats, and the walls had been torn down leaving exposed blackened moldy beams. Not a single bit of this made his parents wary of what an awful place this truly was, which stunned the poor child, who had always thought his parents a practical pair. Even if he didn’t know at this young age what practical was, the absolute lack of it, made the definition of practical seem pretty obvious, despite his knowledge of the word. Every third stair appeared to be intact, and every first and second one seemed to be dangerous. The parents were practically giddy and dancing through the house, like they had never seen a more beautiful place. One of them managed to make it up the stairs and was shouting down the instructions of what is needed on the second floor. The boy was terrified of this floor as it was and wanted nothing to do with the second floor, when the parent upstairs yelled down about a third. Now the boy just wished they had never left New York, regardless of how much he enjoyed that birch beer with his pizza, in what has become a lifetime ago. The house even appeared to make noises, the most hideous noises, as it sat there being disturbed for the first time in God knew how long. The boy has deduced that it isn’t an animal, or even the wind. There is no wind, so despite all of the open access from room to room with no walls it definitely isn’t the wind. It is more of a sound of despair, the sound that the young boy would be making if he wasn’t afraid of being heard. Heard by what or by who he doesn’t quite understand but there is something here that can hear him, and it probably knows all too well that the boy is afraid. The parents appear to have no fear, but they also appear to have no sanity, and haven’t from the moment they looked at this house. Jeremy Crow is the nom de plume of Jeremy Fink, who has been writing blogs entries for almost a decade now. He has had varying degrees of success along the way, several nervous breakdowns, a few “I quit and I’ll never do this again!” moments, and so many get rich quick ideas that you couldn’t count them on two hands. None of any of this has been a failure it’s just been a trial run, for what, he does not know, yet. His brain doesn’t turn off, and he loves to see his own words. To read more of what Jeremy has to say, please visit his site. He writes about fitness, blogging, politics and MORE!
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HOT NEW RELEASE Maia watched for more than a millennia, waiting for a second chance at life on Earth. A hot, unforgiving desert greets her upon arrival, but her surroundings aren't her only problem. In human form, fleeting memories of a past life haunt her. Will she be whole when she rediscovers who she is, or will the reality of her existence require she make yet another sacrifice? This short story by Pavarti K Tyler is a literary twist on a classic Greek Myth. Get Your Copy Now - FREE on Kindle Unlimited http://smarturl.it/HeavensVault Join the celebration on Facebook on 4/28 from 6-9 to win ebooks from other fabulous YA authors and other fun surprises! About the Author Award-winning author of multi-cultural and transgressive literature, Pavarti K Tyler is usually found with Doc Martens strapped on over fishnets, and a girlish giggle as easy and likely as a throaty guffaw. She is an artist, wife, mother, and number cruncher. She graduated Smith College in 1999 with a degree in Theatre. After graduation, she moved to New York, where she worked as a Dramaturge, Assistant Director, and Production Manager on productions both on and off Broadway. Later, Pavarti went to work in the finance industry at several international law firms. She now lives with her husband, two daughters, and two terribly behaved dogs. She keeps busy working with fabulous authors as the Director of Marketing at Novel Publicity, and penning her next genre-bending novel. The best way to stay up to date with Pavarti is to join her mailing list. If you do, she’ll even send you a free short story! Sign up at http://eepurl.com/f1iL5 Follow her at www.PavartiKTyler.com | FaceBook | Twitter | Google+ | Pinterest
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A completely random thought on this Monday morning. I see people all around me walking with a cell phone in hand or to their ear. The only exception to this rule is my husband. He absolutely refuses to have a cell phone. I am no exception to this rule. I always have my cell phone with me. And I do mean always. But I still feel that there are some moments in our lives that deserve some privacy. More so, I feel that other people deserve privacy as well. This seems to be an art lost to many people. Just as I don't really care to share my phone conversations with the world, I really don't want to hear yours. Sadly, this is not the case for everyone. I had gone into the public washroom and sat down in a stall to take care of my business when another woman came in. As she sat in her own stall I could hear her talking in some other language. From another stall comes the shout of an angry woman. “Do you mind? I’m trying to take a f*ckin’ sh*t here!” I tried not to laugh. But I totally agreed. I hate being in a public washroom when there are other people in there, never mind people who are talking on their phones. When the woman continued to talk on her phone, the angry lady let loose. She held nothing back. The sound echoed through her little metal stall. That got the attention of the woman on the phone who spoke in her language in a hurried voice and from what I could tell, ended her call. I was filled with laughter that desperately wanted to escape and I wanted to escape the washroom in general. I quickly finished up and washed my hands. As soon as I was down the hall I let me laughter go. Good on you for saying what I am sure many of us want to say. Get off your damn phone. Congratulations for your openness and not minding to share that private moment with whoever you are speaking with, but perhaps the rest of us don’t want to share with you. Have a little respect. Usually I ask a question related to my post, but for today, no thank you! I do not want to know! Happy Monday everyone! SMART criteria From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia I am not giving up on this journey. It is my own fault for not dedicating myself. But I have legitimate reasons. EXCUSES. So, let’s get back to the basics and set some real, realistic and attainable goals. 1. Drink more water. Minimum 5 cups per day up to 12 cups per day. This one I have been getting better at. I am about 4 – 5 cups per day already. Cutting back on the coffee helps me to reach this goal. 2. Cut back on the bread. This one is going good. I have one piece of bread every three or four days compared to my four pieces every day. 3. Cut back on the snacks. This one, well, I have my days where I do good and other days where I binge. This really needs to change. I need to focus on my cravings to determine what it really is my body is lacking. 4. Get more sleep. My goal here is to get to bed before midnight. Again, some days I get it and other days, there is too much to do and I need more time to do it all. 5. Be active. I really wanted to get back to my HiiT routines. And I did good for a few days. I know, lame. And I have a ton of reasons why I have failed at this. So, instead of beating myself up for failing and instead of continuing with my excuses, I am going to be realistic here. My goal here will be to take 30 minutes during my work day to go for a walk, walk to the furthest washroom, walk as many flights of stairs as I can (I work on the 5th floor of a building that has ghost floors in between each floor). Just get up off my butt and move! In a month we will be moving. We will have access to many new parks and trails to explore. Forget the HiiTs for now. I am just going to focus on simply moving around more. Once we move to our new house and I have adjusted to my new schedule, then I will start my more aggressive routines. I think that 5 goals is a good place to start. I want to be successful in my journey and I can’t do that if I set my expectations of myself so high that I easily get discouraged. I am placing my time to reach these goals as June 1, 2015. Then I can have another look at where I am at. Celebrate my successes and make some new and refreshed goals.
I quite enjoyed reading "International Relations" by Adele Archer. In fact, there were times when I didn't want to put it down! Adele does a marvelous job at bringing the characters to life. This book was a fun read with little surprises along the way.
To get your copy of "International Relations" go to Amazon.com. Also, check out Adele's blog and get to know this author. You'll want to keep watch there for her next book. I myself, can't wait!
Where does your blogging inspiration come from? My dream in life is to be a published author. Not only that, but to have people say, “Did you read the new book out by Rachel Rennie? It’s awesome. I can’t wait for the next one.” I doubt that I will ever be on the same realm of Stephen King, and because I write romance, chances are I would never even share a shelf with him. In seeking publication for my novel “Candle Lake” I was told I needed an author platform. I needed to build an audience. And the more I write, the better I feel. To know that I am sharing my stories and imagination with people all over the world is exciting and rewarding. Is your blogging simply a hobby? What kind of dreams do you have for it? Yes it is a hobby. One day, writing will be my full time career. And my blog will be where I showcase my work and sell my books. What is your support system like and who are your biggest supporters? My biggest supports are my husband and our children. Who supports me other than them? Strangers around the world! My friends on Google+. What are 10 random facts about you? (Eeeek!) 1. Growing up in a small northern town I was completely out of place and my accent didn’t match. I had adapted everyone’s accent and made it my own! 2. I love to organize everything but for some reason find it difficult to organize my time! 3. The very first book I ever wrote was when I was in college. Sadly, the 3.5” floppy disk it was one got broken. 4. I have a poem published in Washington at the court house. I wrote it when I was 12. Being young, I never kept a copy of it. 5. My oldest son and I have been involved in Scouting for 5 years! I was a Scout Leader for 2.5 years then became the Group Commissioner. It saddened me to have to resign from this position after 2.5 years. 6. I hate bugs and camping but am more of a Scout mom then I am a dance mom! The first time I had to do my daughter’s stage make up I was so nervous. 7. I used to work as a Document Control Supervisor with an Engineering firm in the Oil & Gas Industry. I now work in Health Care as an admin assistant. 8. Since I was little, I always said I would have four babies. 9. In my mind’s eye I am an awesome dancer. It’s too bad my feet don’t follow along! 10. I love that my kids have adapted my love for books and will never punish them for wanting to read, “just one more page mommy” when we all know that it means another chapter! What do you enjoy most about blogging? To be able to share my stories with the world at no cost. Knowing that people are enjoying my writing. It is a sense of acceptance in a way. A sense of worth. What do you do when you feel overwhelmed with too many tasks at once? Panic. Write notes so I make sure I don’t forget anything. Then happily check off the items with a sense of accomplishment! What would you do with a large sum of money given to you? What would I NOT do?!! What was one of the most moving books or movies you have ever seen? I will never forget when I saw Passion of the Christ. I was so angry and sad. Reading the Bible is one thing, to see it brought to “life” puts it on a completely different level. “Love you Forever” by Robert Munsch is the most moving book for me. My husband gave it to me for Mother’s Day, which is also our oldest son’s birthday. I read it to my son every night at bedtime for two years. Then I read it to both him and his younger sister every night for two years. And then to them and their younger sister every night for two years! And then…I had I memorized and just said it to all four of my children all of the time and still do! As the children got older though, we also needed to read the Harry Potter series as well as MANY other books! Do you have a bucket list? Name 5 things on that. 1. To go on a cross Canada trip in a motorhome with my family. 2. To take a train ride through the mountains with my family. 3. To write full time and quit my day job. 4. To own a large house where our kids will return to with their babies. 5. To have a honeymoon Where would you like to see yourself in the next couple of years? 2 years? Published! 5 years? Buying a home and helping our oldest into college/university (yikes) What is your single best piece of advice for someone starting out in the blogging world? Be honest and true to yourself. Put forth your best effort. It is a reflection of who you are. I would like to nominate these bloggers:
1. Matt Banner – Want to know something about blogging? Look him up! And I love how he interacts with his readers. 2. Paul White – A writer who always posts something that I enjoy reading. 3. Luna Darcy – Always posting things I can relate to and makes me smile. Also, it’s all in the name “Organized Lunacy”. Apologies to my other fellow bloggers who I hugely respect but I probably didn’t choose you as you’ve already been nominated. And to the nominees, please feel free to ignore this nomination, you may very well have been nominated before and I just don’t know about it – but I for one would be interested in putting you in the hot-seat! Ok…before you judge me you must know. I am a curious person. I am also a bit of a lazy person, I suppose. But I will make excuses as to why that is until the cows come home. But I guess that defeats the purpose, right? Making excuses I mean. I just wanted “help”. I wanted to make this journey a little easier. I wanted help to be successful. To be honest, I doubt my own ability to be successful. Why? Well, it’s simply really. There is thing out there called food. And food is good to me. It helps me celebrate when I’m happy and things are going good in my life and it helps me feel better when I am down. So this offer came up, and I took it. I bought “the” pills that are all the rave right now. I mean, the marketing is pretty good out there. The testimonials support it. How many fake liars can there possibly be out there in the world. Surely there must be some truth in their claims.
Well, I can say I have not lost any weight taking these pills. Not a pound. And I have not gained muscle either because I have not been working out consistently. What I can say is that it has helped me with my emotional eating. And my boredom eating. And my cravings. And they did give me a bit more energy. I stopped taking the pills right now because I want to take them while I am working out. But I have been so tired and yawning so much, I am thinking of starting again. Mind you, I am also trying to quit coffee. My husband says my coffee addiction is not helping me with my health journey. He’s a smart man and I know there are many others out there that seem to agree with him. These are the pills I bought. I did extensive research first and ensured I bought ones with Calcium, Chromium and Potassium and with 1000mg of HCA. I can’t tell you why it is so important, I just remember reading that it was. This isn’t a review; just my experience. I was given this as a prompt by one of my readers on Google+, DJ “The Trainman” Walker I hope you enjoy it! It is every girls dream to be invited to the grand ball. Of course, this ball it isn’t what it seems. There is no modern day prince to be found at this ball. She stands in the middle of the main hall underneath a glorious chandelier. The light sparkles off her magnificent dress cascading rainbows on the floor. She holds the wand of her feathered mask over her eyes and looks at the crowd with curiosity. She is surrounded by beautiful men and women, some couples and some singles.
She feels privileged to be here. An invitation slipped under her door two nights ago. She is surprised she was able to find a dress on such short notice. This was an exclusive ball and she had no idea who she even knew in these circles, let alone someone who would invite her. A lady swept past her with a swish of her gown. She wore a lace mask on her face that appeared to be painted on. A man in a tuxedo handed her a tall glass of champagne. She took it and was about to say thank you when he quickly shook his head with a finger pressed to her lips to shush her. She quietly nodded her understanding and sipped her champagne. She was really at a loss of what to do. As she examined the room it was clear that although the others were mingling, there was no talking. At least, she didn’t see their lips moving and the big band music was playing too loudly to hear anything at all. She decided to simply stand there and sip her champagne. She would patiently wait for the one who invited her to approach. After two glass of champagne, she was feeling a little warm and her vision was a little fuzzy. The smiles surrounding her felt suspicious. Half way through her third glass and he approached, grabbing her by the elbow and leading her to the dance floor. He took her champagne from her and put it on the platter of a butler passing by. He moved her so quickly that she didn’t have a chance to look at him. That was until she found herself face to face with him, her nose mere inches away from his. After spinning her around for what seemed like hours, she felt desperate to get outside for some air. She moved her hand off his shoulder and put it on his chest in an attempt to gently nudge some distance between them. He would have none of it. Now that he had her in his home and the champagne was doing its job, he was not letting her go. He knew if he had she would surely fall prey to all of the other eyes that were on her. But she was relentless and she tried harder to pull away. He was prepared for this, and he was very strong. The grip on her elbow frightened her and she tried harder to work her way out of his grasp. “Please,” she whispered, “I need air.” All eyes turned on her at the sound of her voice. There was to be no speaking here. She looked from her dance partner to those around her as panic started to bubble through her veins. Her instincts told her to break away and run. But she simply could not. She was too weak and no match for this man. The air was harder to breathe as she sensed the others moving in closer. He growled then and dragged her by the arm out onto the balcony. It was on the balcony that he kissed her. It was a quick and forceful kiss. One that she had not been expecting. And, it hurt. She put her fingers to her lips. They were bleeding. She was about to say something when he began to lean in to her, more slowly this time. His lips brushed past hers as he moved closer to her cheek. Out of the corner of her eye she caught a glimpse of something flash brightly. She turned her head just slightly and saw fangs. ‘Fangs?!’ she thought to herself. Her heart beating so fast now that she was afraid it would come right out of her chest. He smiled. He could feel her blood coursing through her veins. Hear her heart thumping madly like an animal in danger. And that she was. But he vowed to himself he would keep her safe. Just as his teeth touched her skin, the balcony door flew open. He spun around in anger. He knew that her wildly beating heart must have attracted the others. She felt his grip loosen just a little bit. She took her opportunity and jumped off the balcony onto the lush green grass below. She could hear the fight from the balcony above. There was no time to waste. Although she was in pain, she kicked off her beautiful, and now ruined, shoes and ran. --------------- “Time to wake up Aaron,” her dad called from the doorway of her room, “I can’t be late for work today.” She stretched, wishing for just five minutes more. “That’s ok dad,” she said through a yawn, “I think I’ll walk today.” “Are you sure?” “Ya, thanks.” “Ok,” he came to her bedside and kissed her on the forehead, “don’t be late though.” “I won’t dad.” She smiled up at him. ----------------- As she walked to school that morning, she passed by the big mysterious house on the corner. There were rumors of a new family moving in there soon. It had been vacant for most of the year already. Something in the grass sparkled and she walked towards it. On the grass was a shoe. An awfully familiar shoe. She picked it up to look at it closer and then looked up to the balcony doors where a curtain fell quickly shut. © Rachel Rennie 2015 Madness I say, utter madness! Well, not really, I just wanted to say that! Moving is a daunting task. We have a lot of memories in this house. I am both worried and excited. I am worried because I have four young children. It is very important to me to raise them in a good neighborhood where they have an opportunity to establish lifelong friends and where I know they will be safe playing in the yard or on their commute to school. Living in a big city, which can be a scary thing. For me at least. I am worried because we have been here for seven years. My kids have already established some great friends, and I do worry that if we move away they may lose those friendships. I am worried because when I look at the costs of renting a house and all the other expenses it is more than what we have been paying for the past seven years. I worry about the “what if”s. I am worried because where I do want to move not only comes with higher cost of living, but more expenses for me to commute to work as it is just outside of the city in a small town. However, it is right by all of the schools I will need for my children, so that will save money on their commutes. What has me is it is ideal for raising a family. And, my friend lives right down the street. I don’t have any family close by and not many friends, so this is appealing to me. I’m worried that if I go ahead with this one house, that another house will pop up that might be better priced and in a good neighborhood in the city. I am excited to move. To move into a house that we can utilize all of the property. To live in a house without drafts that keep blowing out the pilot light on the hot water tank and make us pay hundreds more in heating expenses. In a house that doesn’t have its own private lake in the basement every spring when the snow melts or with every heavy rain. To live in a house with proper electrical so our room heater doesn’t burn out the plug in the wall. Or to move into a house off a busy street. I’m excited to explore a new neighborhood and new parks with my children on warm summer days. I am excited for them to make new friends. And for me too. My mind is preoccupied with the whole idea of finding a new house for my family. One that will be suitable for all of the Rennie clan. There are so many things I need to keep in mind. The decision is mine to make. They all tell me they trust me to make the right decision and that they don’t care what I choose. But if ever in the future something happens and there is any resentment at all, it will be directed at me. That is a huge responsibility to bare. You should see my desk. It is covered in sticky notes listing the different options for housing with the pros and cons of each. It’s a good thing for me that these types of decisions only come along once every few years. I can’t wait till we buy a house. Really, if I am to be really honest with myself. I am sad to go. Even with all of its flaws, it is a beautiful house in a beautiful neighborhood. But I know deep in my heart that things happen for a reason. And, to put it simply, my family I think is ready to leave the hustle and bustle of the city and move to a smaller town where they can have that close knit community. The old me would whine and cry, "I failed." Then I would proceed to eat everything in sight to help me feel better. In the moment, it works but the satisfaction doesn't last long. Well, Easter was no exception. But Easter is over and I can't sit here and pout forever.
I need to make the time and make the change. I need to get back up and keep moving forward towards my goals. I have a lot going on in my life, but that doesn't mean I can't stop for a moment and enjoy a walk in the fresh air with my children. Right now, at least it is something. As for my love of food, I need to make a commitment to myself. What is more important to me? The food I am enjoying in the moment in a body that I am not pleased with? Or the food that gives my body what it needs to be healthy and strong so I can be happy with what I see in the mirror? Or, better yet, the body I am working towards so that it can sustain a long life and be here to not only watch my children grow but to be active in their growth. My wagon bounced down the trail of Easter and went off track. I would even say that I fell right off that stinking wagon, but, I can get back on track. And I will. Being healthy and fit is not a fad, it is a lifestyle. |