Yes... I vanished into thin air.

Sometimes things happen in life.
I've been writing... reading and dealing with everyday life. I just got busy and forgot about this blog for a while.
I'm still around.
As a matter of fact, I'm probably ignoring this blog cuz I am revising.
My Sister Has AIDS should be on the shelves by late October.
The next in the series...the one I am working on now... called My Mother Has Lupus will follow (sometime next year)
My psychological thriller is on the back burner for now while I concentrate on getting through illustrations with a dear friend who is doing all the art for the two books mentioned above.

Life is okay...not great...not super...but okay.

Hope yours is too.

Little Girl Lost

I'm going through a few transitions in my life. With my writing, my poetry and yes family. Needless to say you may see the results of these transitions in this blog coming soon. I feel the need to stretch my wings.
It is time to spruce the place up a bit.
With that said.... be on the lookout for a new header....a cleaner layout and some general cleanup of the links around here. I've grown weary of the little girl approach and want I am ready for some new digs.

I'm signed up for computer classes on web design. Those start Saturday. As of now I am working on Photoshop and will be learning Dreamweaver as well. Eventually I will be able to plan my own site with flash intro's and the whole works.

I wonder how much progress I will have made in three months?
We shall see.
Just in the seven lessons I have had in the graphics program I am learning by leaps and bounds. I would post an example but the images are in the wrong format for blogger.

ta ta

OUCH...I fell down AGAIN

Can you say KLUTZ? I think they have a picture of me next to the word in the dictionary. YEP. I fell again. On the ice/snow. Now the whole ankle/ligaments and all are involved. No cast can fix this. Going to the doc tomorrow.

Not a happy camper. Walking is a nightmare. Or should I say hobbling as I cry?

Oh ouchies.

I'm revising. Yes.

Getting a book ready for publication. A book you say?

Yep. It has been sitting on my shelf for far too long.

It needs to see the light of day.

It is a chapter book for 4th-5th graders. It is being mailed out to an editor tomorrow.

I can hardly believe it myself!!!! The book is tentatively called "My Sister Has AIDS" and is a fictionalized account of my twin sisters experience. The age is changed and I have taken MANY liberties with the story for dramatic purpose and to make it kid friendly but the characters are based on the relationship between us two twins and the choices she made that ended up causing her to become HIV positive and ultimately causing her eventual death.

I wrote the book while in college for a class. Everyone said get it published. It sat on a shelf. Then my sister got worse. I showed her the book and asked her permission to publish it. She agreed. She died in 96.

I began writing other things and left the book on the shelf. Well, it is no longer gathering dust!!!

Now that the ball is rolling I am hard at work on the next in what will be a series.

Next I need to find an illustrator. Then, I will be working with someone on layout, and of course the editing, creating my cover...and so many other decisions. Deadlines are being created. For ME!

Oh, I wanna see my book on shelves. I made a promise to my sister about this book before she died. It is gonna happen. *holds breath and pinches self*

More details soon.

Oh, we still have tons of snow here.

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HUMBUG To BLOGGER BETA!!!!


Okay I have had it!!!
I'm switchin for real this time. Blogger and Blogger Beta cannot even leave comments for each other. If you want to leave me a comment and you get stuck go to my newly created wordpress blog and leave comments there.

Busy day today.... defrag needs done, hair is so shaggy a cut is long overdue, and my house needs a maid.... (not me) unfortunately I cannot afford a maid so I have to clean it!
Getting the Christmas decorations out of storage too. I'll post a picture as soon as I get the tree up.

Did I mention being in print?

Several months ago a little mouse friend of mine told me about Cats Meow, an ezine for writers and readers. I sent off a few short stories and poems. Getting an email saying your story will be in an upcoming newsletter is a great feeling. Actually having the issue come out and seeing your name and story printed on the web page feels like heaven. So, today the issue is out. Check out my two poems and my Lupus story here.
Naturally, you are looking for the stories by Kay/writewize. I cannot believe there is a slight problem with the web address on the ezine but I'm still thrilled.
I'm nearly finished with an ebook I've been working on in secret as well. More details soon. It is for aspiring writers.
Bring on the comments. I'm so happy!!!!!

Oh, I actually risked germs and illness to go to Walmart today. Yes me.... (the one with a compromised immune system) I bought a few Christmas gifts and some address label stickers so I could reprint new ones for a project I am working on. Also picked up "The Devil Wears Prada". I've heard it is very good.

Technorati Tags:writing, personal, in print

Comic Relief And Cursing

Yawn. Check out those teeth eh? Couldn't even keep my eyes open for comic relief. They are doing a show to raise money reubuild after Huricaine Katrina However, I did catch a bit of it while typing out this entry. Somehow I had it in my head we were watching CBS. I nearly fell over when the cursing started. I mean you just don't hear that kind of language on regular TV. This guy was going on an on about something I couldn't type here without a "R" rating. And somebody bleeping every other word. Turns out the show is on HBO. Of course. You can say "kitty" (substitute word) as many times as you want on HBO.

Whoopie said something about a simulcast on TBS. I can just see the scrambling to bleep out all the cussing. Yikes.

Sleeping nearly 20 hours a day right now. I guess my immune system needs to replenish. I hope this changes soon. I'd like to be able to function again.

Technorati Tags: comic+ relief


I think I finally figured out how to do Technorati tags. Wow!

Anti Spam Software

Have you checked out any anti-spam software lately? Are you tired of SPAM taking over your email box? I have several email accounts and quite frankly I use my filters effectively but I still manage to see an awful lot of spam every day. I'm thinking about investing in a decent anti spam program like Askimet. I'll be asking Santa. My CA security center charges me extra to use the anti spam so I haven't uploaded it. Instead, I use a freebie program. Holly Lisle uses the Askimet and swears by it. I cannot make up my mind.
It must be exhaustion from wading through all the SPAM in my email. LOL.

I thought I would add the randomizer as well. Please leave a comment if you stopped by.

Technorati Tags:anti spam, personal

Hotmail is down. Yuck.

What on earth was I thinking? My advice for today... set up an email account that does not rely on a free service to log in. I cannot even read my email today. HOTMAIL is down. I keep getting a silly refresh message. Yeah, when do I get to read my email?
Thank goodness I have 5 other accounts. Too bad none of them are related to my writing.
Well, live and learn. I will be changing my email immediately.

Technorati Tags:hotmail

Sick and Tired of Being Sick and tired

That is it! This cold or whatever is taking over and it has me as its hostage. I'm not happy about this. Beth (my protagonist) is on strike, the dog needs a bath, the dishes are piling up in the sink, the laundry basket is overflowing and I cannot seem to function except to blow my nose and cough endlessly. I've had it!
I'm climbing back into bed until Spring. Don't wake me.
Humbug.

Technorati Tags:illness, protagonist

New Medication may be the answer for me.

After a summer of complete agony, I had a chat with my doctor today. Lupus sucks sometimes. I laid it out on the line and let him know I really didn't care too much for the chemo medication he had me on and how I felt like a prisoner in my own home. Needless to say, he listened!!!

We talked over the alternatives and decided together to try something else. I like the way he respects my opinions. It is MY Health!!! So, we talked about a new medication. It isn't as devastating to the system. It doesn't make you nauseated all the time like my other chemo did. Yes, I need to suppress my immune system, but I also need to be able to function from day to day.

He is trying me on cellcept. I linked the name so you can read about it.

Now, I just wish I could find a pill for fatigue!

Tags: Lupus, cellCept, medication, KuMidwest,

A little about me

I thought I would share a bit about me. I will be 44 years old in a few days, on August 7th. I was born in Northern California and spent the first twenty years of my life living there. California can be very beautiful. It doesn't have the seasons like some of the other parts of the country, but we lived quite close to the ocean and made frequent trips to play in the sand and surf. Each day the fog had to lift so the mornings were quite comfortable and it never got too hot. We basically had two seasons: when it rained and when it didn't. Everyone thinks California is fairly radical and full of hippies. A lot of normal families lived there. Mine wasn't one of them!!!! My biological parents were quite young when they had me. I was twin B. My twin sister was twice my size straight from the womb and had a strong personality throughout her life. She died in 1996. Our biological parents tried to take care of us and found it impossible. They abandoned us and we went into the foster care system. Long story short we went through over five foster homes and an orphanage before finally getting adopted at age 10. Being adopted sounds like a fairytale dream come true. I'd grown hardened in the foster care system and I wasn't holding my breath for the cookie-baking mother in an apron. It was a good thing too because she was a true monster. She was physically, emotionally, and verbally abusive for the rest of the time we lived in her home. Years later when we left her home we were followed closely by a scalding cast-iron skillet with dinner still in it, which was thrown at the front door at the moment I yanked it closed behind me. Obviously I do not speak to her anymore. Obviously my life has been full. I've just touched the tip. I went on to marry a Navy man who abused me for seven years before I got the courage to leave him and take my little boy to safety. Domestic violence is not easy to handle and many women stay in the relationship a long time. I left him six times before I left for good. It took courage to live alone. I had to pull myself together and be willing to look out for my safety and my child. I was frightened at first and then later I felt empowered. All of these things pushed me to write. I wrote my feelings in journals, poetry, short stories etc. Over the years I have won some awards and contests for my poems online. My advice to those who have walked in my shoes:
WRITE
share with someone you trust
reach out.
Do not hide away alone and scared.
Get help!


****Update***
My foster daughter had another son on July 23rd. Now I have two grandsons. The picture above shows me holding Dawson. My other grandson Jaden is now 17 months old and quite a sweetheart.