Bathrobes and Doorbells

Let this be a warning to you ladies. Don't, please don't, answer the door in your bathrobe.

Vicki did and you can see what it is leading to…

"I believe you. I just don't trust you," I whispered.

He glanced down at the bare flesh my robe no longer covered, stroking every inch of it with his eyes. I couldn't contain the delicious quiver wiggling its way through me.

"But you trust me enough to remain here in nothing but your bathrobe. You live dangerously, Vicki."

"In all honesty, you're right." I followed his gaze and righted my robe to cover my nakedness. I couldn't explain it; modesty and fear vacated my being. I found myself powerless to forbid my inappropriate lack of action. I wanted to be near him, to feel his strength. I couldn't help but wonder at his apparent self-control…

Available now at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Kobe and Desert Breeze Publishing.

http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Days-Promise-Shaunna-Gonzales-ebook/dp/B009EHRB7K/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1385441080&sr=1-1&keywords=Dark+Days+of+Promise

What to do with the Snow and Cold...

I ducked behind the corner of the porch but continued laughing and dodging too much to note any difference in my surroundings ... until a snowball hit glass with a hollow thump. I glanced around to discover why the expected crack of glass hadn't followed. A Jeep sat parked several feet away. The snowball had struck tempered glass. I needed a safe haven from flying orbs of snow and scurried to the back of the vehicle.

I slid to an awkward stop, my color rising with irrational speed. I peered at Staff Sergeant Kelly Chase, once again face to face or rather nose to nose. The effect of his animal magnetism swept over me, taking my senses with it. The intervening days since our last encounter had served to intensify his good looks. I turned back to the fight at hand without muttering even a hint of welcome.

A Year to Remember

This is the year that I am so thankful for.

Except:

Two years later, I wondered if the day for the procedure would ever come. I've handled every "nay-sayer" as diplomatically as one struggling to retain cognitive functions possibly can, including not referring to "Huggins Applied Healing" by name. I know the protocol sounds like it couldn't possibly work, but I've read the research, albeit I promptly forgot most of the technical jargon. My memory often reminds me of the first admonition to consider heavy metal poisoning long before my diagnosis. They didn't have the facts and I cast it aside with all the other wild cures. Third time's the charm, or so the saying goes, that was when I listened, read and became informed.

I found a specialist and drove five hours one way often enough to know the traffic patterns. The amalgams were removed, the highest negatively charged at a time. I then took time to heal before the major surgery was done, without pain killers-- the removal of root canals. Special protocol was followed for those specialized dental visits.

Why is it that powerful forces don't want those living with auto-immune diseases to know the truth? The protocol, as farfetched as it may sound to some, has worked for me.

I've changed my eating habits including denying myself of favorite foods including but not limited to anything with gluten in it, oatmeal, fish, pork and the killer, I say that sarcastically, chocolate. Much of the dietary changes have come slowly over the years long before learning of Huggins and his protocol. After staying away from the specific food items for over a year, any little slip is painful enough to enforce total compliance. Eating right has only been my part of the recovery process in addition to refraining from the use of anything that contains aluminum, as in replacing pots and pans, avoiding antiperspirants--which means deodorants and daily showers, changing toothpaste brands and anything else I can bring myself to avoid. I will continue following the regime for as long as I choose to feel good.

 I'm proud to say that I have followed every specification of doctor's guidance, including one year of doing so little, I thought I might go stir-crazy. The guidelines were necessary in my case due to the heart meridian which the root canals sat on. That and my father, and his mother, both died of heart attacks at young ages.

(As a footnote to my story -- I now walk fifteen minutes everyday that my schedule allows with a goal of 30 minutes by the end of 2013. I have a future goal of walking for one hour each day and dancing without restrictions.)

Finding the miracle that I am so thankful for

Please note: My year is condensed to make it more readable. I will forever be thankful for the dear friend that dared to share this information with us.

Excerpt: 

I find the cognitive function to thank him (my hubby) for his assistance in the yard, the kitchen and now to bed. I refuse to let him help me in the bathroom, hoping to save a smidgeon of romantic dignity. He tucks me into bed.

"Sweetheart." Hubby dares to have a logical conversation with an illogical MS-er. "You've heard me mention Oliver at work."

Nice one. I don't know Oliver though he's been mentioned often so I can't verbally attack the man. "Yeah."

"He's got an aunt who has gone through this protocol a while back and he says she's doing really well. He says he would be willing to share some reading material if you're interested. Remember how he mentioned a Dr. Huggins or Higgins or something like that?"

I nod noncommittally. I've heard about every outlandish, farfetched cure for MS that has ever been thought of, including bee stings, absurd diets, lightning, and scorpion stings just to name a few. Most things have no science behind them.

Harrison showers this latest cure with cautious accolades. This is something he never does. Two days later he hands me a thin booklet.

"This is where we start. I read most of it over my lunch hour and it makes sense. You should read it."

I cautiously acquiesce and agree with Harrison's conclusion. The next step is to become better informed. I purchase the doctor's book and read it, including all the reference material he uses, at least what I can get my hands on and almost as quickly forget most of the information except the distinct feeling that the protocol to have the metal, especially the mercury amalgams and root canals, removed from my mouth will benefit me personally. The next step is finding a qualified specialist and scrapping our pennies together. It will require over $4,000.00 as the insurance companies consider the protocol experimental or "cosmetic". As if being able to walk and stand without losing one's balance is purely cosmetic.

The straw that nearly broke my back

In all honesty, this didn't happen with in the last year, more like three or so years ago. Again name have been changed.

Excerpt:

This neurologist is slightly different from the last, he is exhausting all other possibilities before confirming the diagnosis I received twelve years prior.

I pull into a parking space, my hands trembling. The drive has been uneventful and yet I'm a wreck. I retrieve my cane, angry to have to own one. At least I didn't have to park in the disability parking today. I try not to as often as I can.

My mood is improved to a quiet acceptance of my plight for the moment as I wait to be called from the waiting room. Dr. Williams doesn't make me wait long.

"The tests for Shogran's came back negative so it is a good thing that we sent you in for the MRIs." My fists clench involuntarily remembering how I'd used my last muscle relaxers to be able to cope with the clunking magnet. Thank goodness I hadn't had the dreaded copper taste to deal with while trying to relax for the half hour to forty-five minute, touch-less torture.

"So, do you believe me now that I have MS?"

Momentary uncertainty whisked across Dr. Williams' expression, confounding his bedside manner for a moment before he pasted his pleasant expression back in place.

"We've been looking for everything 'but' for a while now, haven't we? In that time, I feel we've become friends, don't you agree?"

"Uh, huh." I didn't agree, but I wasn't about to burst his bubble.

"Mea, Multiple sclerosis isn't a killer, but you know that. There's a reason I've tested you for everything under the sun before coming to this diagnosis. Quite frankly, it's a slam to my ego and pretty much any doctor's ego to basically tell a patient they have MS. It's like saying, 'I'm sorry, there is nothing I can do for you, except prescribe overly expensive drugs. You are now slated for a very long and painful death.' Long as in, 'until death do us part,' and painful because the nerves are taking a hit and dying every day. Think of a spindly plant that is reaching with all its might for the beauty of the sunlight and its life giving rays only to be singed a little every day. The plant doesn't die instantly, it lives out its full life cycle the best it can until frost or something else kills it."I knew from his tone that it was a prepared speech; it didn't match his fraudulent smile.

 "There are experimental drugs coming on the market, but quite frankly, your number is up. The fact that your first exacerbation was over twenty-five years ago and you are still mobile is very unusual, not to mention your energy levels and relatively low pain. The next flair you have may be the one that ends your run. I don't know if it will be today, tomorrow or next week, but the odds are that it will come. I recommend you do the blood tests now so that when the new drug becomes available you will be at the front of the line, so to speak."

Fatigue keeps me from punching him in the stomach. Gee, thanks Doc, for being so positive.

Why I haven't loved my life.

I alluded to not being thankful for my life in my Thanksgiving Day post. Some may have felt I left too much unsaid. If that is the case for you, then I offer this post today to give you a piece of where I've been coming from.

Please note:

This post and those that will follow in the coming days, are part of a short story that will be published in the spring of 2014 by the Writers Unite to Fight Cancer. Maybe if you like these excerpts, you will chose to buy the book. All the proceeds go to fighting Cancer.

If you like my writing style, I'd love to have you join me here as a follower (if you haven't already) and even better for my pocket book, buy Dark Days of Promise and future books.

Excerpt (names have been changed.) 

Even worse than reporting the doctor's findings to my husband, Harrison, is coming to grips with reality. I have a sister who has lived with MS for roughly thirty years. The reunion when my older siblings decided to relieve her of motherhood responsibilities by doling out her children still haunts me. My sister, dealing so gracefully, is my role model. I praised her once, even going so far as to claim my willingness to have the same disease if I could be just like her. I'd been young and didn't realize what I was saying.

Now I shiver with terror. She fights her loss of balance, motor skills, cognitive powers, and refuses to succumb to needing a wheelchair except for the months she convalesced after falling and breaking her hip while hanging clothes on the clothesline. The day I received news of her heart attack scared the logical thought process from my brain for weeks. MS isn't hereditary, so how did I get it? What symptoms will haunt me?

Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving

Giving thanks for family, friends, life and love. And really all that goes with it.

But just for fun I'd like to invite those visiting today to help me make a list of what we are thankful for.

Cyberspace - to help us stay in touch, even from our Ipads and cell phones. (Okay, not so much for the hackers that make life stressful at the worst possible times.)

The ability to communicate - whether by spoken word, written word, the strains of music or the quiet touch.

Speaking of touch… the touch of a loving pet, you know that cat rubbing up against your leg, a dog that bumps your hand with its nose, not to mention the purrs and the excited yips.

Loved ones - those who accept you as you are, even with your many flaws and gently invite you to grow. And even the estranged family member who hasn't communicated with you in so very long…maybe it is time to extend an olive branch and mend the broken connection. Too hard? Maybe pray for them and you to mend that gaping hole in your heart.

Laughter -- that means the ones that make you laugh, help you laugh at yourself as well as the endorphins released as you laugh. Even the chuckle counts, but the smile, when you are able to make a sound isn't enough.

I love my life. That sounds a little presumptuous, but it isn't meant that way. I've not always been able to say I love life and am thankful for it. You see, this past year has given me some very miraculous blessing concerning my life. I've had a year of change, for which I thankful. Explaining it all requires a separate and long post, as in roughly 5000 words. You are welcome to came back in the coming days to share it with me.

I'm thankful for those I love and those that love me in return, Love that is demonstrated in so many ways. Of course, for me there is the romantic love. I love my husband dearly and am very thankful for his unending patience.

And most of all, I am thankful for My Savior, Jesus Christ and His atonement. His grace humbles me every day. If I did a better job of keeping Him at the center of my life, I would be humbled every hour of every day. I am thankful for His love and His patience. May all of you feel His love in your lives.

What are you thankful for?

Dark Days of Promise excerpt.

"The high I get from killing another man is comparable to any other high. Sex, drugs, it's a rush ... and addicting."

You've got to be kidding! Abhorred, I tried to retreat without a sound until I forgot about the squeal of damp rubber soles on linoleum as I twisted around the door. The squeak echoed across the room. I cringed and hurried to escape, pulling the door closed as my feet took flight.

And you thought it might be safe to miss out on this book... right!

Sharing this on Face book, thought I ought to share here too.

Share:

Time Out For Writers ANWA's 22nd Conference will be held at the Mesa Hilton from February 20 through February 22. Attendees can participate in a query/pitch workshop, attend two full days of classes with industry professionals, enter our "BOB" contest (Beginning of Book) and win fabulous prizes, and pitch their work to both national and local agents and editors.    Gregg Luke  WRITING WHITE-KNUCKLE SUSPENSE Ever wonder why some pages burn with the intensity of whitewater rafting while others are like floating down a gentle, meandering brook? It all comes down to the six elements of suspense writing. This course will demonstrate various techniques to writing page-turning, white-knuckle suspense in any genre. The discussion will include compelling characterization, good pacing, anticipation vs. thrills, detailing and techno stuff, resolution, and the trimming of all fat. Gregg R. Luke, R.Ph. was born in Bakersfield, California, but spent the majority of his childhood and young adult life in Santa Barbara, California. He served an LDS mission in Wisconsin, then pursued his education in Natural Sciences at SBCC, UCSB, and BYU. He completed his schooling at the University of Utah, College of Pharmacy. Gregg currently practices pharmacy in Logan, Utah. He is a voracious reader and has been writing stories since childhood. He has been published in Skin Diver Magazine, the Oceanographic Letter, Destiny Magazine, and the New Era Magazine. His fictional novels include The Survivors, Do No Harm, Altered State, Blink Of An Eye, Bloodborne, and Deadly Undertakings, five of which were Whitney Award finalists.   Gratitude Giveaway!     As a huge thanks for all the early ANWA Conference registrations, everyone  who registers by Thanksgiving Day (Next Week - 11/28/13) will automatically be entered into a giveaway for $15 at the conference bookstore!  If you haven't registered  yet, there's still time. Arizona Educator Licensing "Time Out for Writers" offers Professional Development hours for Arizona Educator Licensing. Receive up to 17 Professional Developmental hours that can be applied toward the renewal of your Arizona Educator's License! Register Today! Thursday, Friday and Saturday February 20-22, 2014 Hilton Phoenix/East Mesa 1011 West Holmes Avenue Mesa,  Arizona   85210-4923  STAY CONNECTED

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Stale Writing Week

Commentary

Lest any of you feel for me over the Stale Writing Week---don't. It's been a productive week. This exercise was for any writer that hits the proverbial wall. Some do even though it is NanoWrito Month.  And if by chance these tips have helped you in some way, feel free to share them.

(Of course I wouldn't complain if you linked a comment back here to me. J)

$3.99 on sale at Amazon for undisclosed time.

Stale Writing Day 7

Stale Writing Tip: Day 7

Okay, it's been one of those weeks. Let's not drag it out…

…take the day off, dagnabit!

Or,----you can spend the day making up cuss words that aren't cuss words like dagnabit, beetlefuzz, fatosis, halawhatcha…

You get the idea, now run with it (or walk).

Stale Writing Week muddles on to Day 6

Stale Writing Tip: Day 6

If you are a religious person, think of the creation. God didn't stop creating on the sixth day, he lined everything up and took it all to His main character, Adam, and had him name everything. What would your main character name your villain? Your love interest? And every character in the book? Now, go back and have the main character tell you why each name was chosen.

Go for a walk.

It may not be Friday but it is Day 5 of a Stale Writing Week

Stale Writing Tip: Day 5

Think of the last five days as a work week. It's been a bad week. Time to look forward to the weekend. Fridays are always the best day of the work week. Why is that the case for you?

 Humor in the office? Try telling a joke or better yet, writing one.

 Friday after work mean cocktails…for you? Not recommended while trying to write, but if what you've been doing all week isn't working, it's time for a change up.

Dang that Stale Writing Week continues...

Stale Writing Tip: Day 4

Still stymied? Attend a writers group, or start one, and take care to compliment others on their writing. (It helps if you are honest here, but stretching the truth to help another feel good about their work is allowed in this case.)

Stale Writing Week Hump Day

Stale Writing Tip: Day 3

That quagmire still looking a bit cloudy? Warning: Day 3's cure is dangerous. Repeat Day 1 but with a different friend. Try chatting with a friend that is recovering from surgery. They need your brand of cheering up. Go for a longer walk with company. (If you choose to take your dog, make sure he/she is wearing his/her listening ears.) Now, try out that last scene with your dog or the friend you are walking with as the main character. (Not recommended if the scene was a sizzling sexy scene.)

---Local law enforcement may take steps in the later case and haul your butt/bottom/a--/tail/rump/posterior/derrière to the tank to cool off!

A Week of Stale Writing continues...

Stale Writing Tip: Day 2

So, you say talking with your friend didn't get you out of the quagmire of flat writing. Cure # 2 for day 2 and this one you may want to repeat after your first exposure to it.

Go walking with a friend. (The endorphins need more than your writing cave to bounce around in.)

A week of Stale Writing

Stale Writing Tip: Day 1

Let's face it writers, there are days that the muse didn't bother showing up for. Talk about a bad hair day! Stale writing makes even the worst hair day look good. There is a cure for those  bad and sometimes really bad days.

Warning: Try only one per day.

Talk with a friend about their problems. (This can be writing related but often it is not since writing is the center of your world, not theirs.)

                               

                                  So excited!!!

The charm for Dark Days of Promise arrived today. Isn't it pretty?

The glare is bad but that must be in part because it is so shiny. That and I'm still learning to use the ipod.

In Her Hands Update

Just when I thought I was doing an awesome job on In Her Hands, I took a hard look at the word count and choked, only 45,000! Cough, cough and this rough draft is done. Time to go back and fill out the pages before the climax (currently sitting at page 116). Yikes! I only need to write 30-40 pages of description, details, sequels, and maybe a bit of back story... Back to the writing cave for me…

Key Chain Charm



Mock up before binding into charm



Ordering my Charm for Dark Days of Promise. Loving the looks of it! It costs more than an e-copy of the book, but (me singing) - I'm so vain, this key chain is all about my book…

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/2014-ANWA-Writers-Conference--Time-Out-For-Writers.html?soid=1107257096875&aid=nuIz1dCK7jU

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/2014-ANWA-Writers-Conference--Time-Out-For-Writers.html?soid=1107257096875&aid=nuIz1dCK7jU

WIP Update

In Her Hands (Book Two), which follows Her Promise is well under way. I'm so excited to tell "more of the story." Book Three, His Journey will tell the rest of the story. Who knows how it will end? Or where?

Her Promise and In Her Hands Update

I'm so excited! Swoon Romance has asked for the full manuscript of Her Promise! Thank you, Mandy Schoen and Louise Gornall for giving me this opportunity. The full manuscript has been sent and now we go into round two of the waiting game with Swoon Romance. Cross your fingers, let your engines idle, maybe even a prayer or two (if that is your thing).

What will I be doing during the next 6 - 8 weeks? Writing, of course! Mercedes has her story to tell and she has my ear (and my fingers) for In Her Hands.

Trevor? Poor baby, he has to be a gentleman and wait, if he can stand the pain… hehehe yes, there is a reason for his pain…

Yikes!

That was a quick turnaround! Harlequin (Corina Press) doesn't want Her Promise.

Good news though. They invited me to submit any future Romance I may write.

WIP Update

It's been a busy week and with a few unexpected changes to my baby, the biggest being her name.

You've read the announcements, but this one is the final (until a publisher adds their two cents.) The title she went to the publishers with is Her Promise. Why have I finally settled on this title, you ask? Because it is all about the protagonist's promise made and kept at great sacrifice.

Sizzle Non-kiss Style Part 3

"Close your eyes and trust me."

She gazed at the controlled smoldering of his eyes before she allowed her eyelids to slide shut. With his fingers spread wide, he placed his hands on her hips. A moment later he held her buttocks. His hands roamed up her back. With his left hand at her back, he caressed her arm with his right. His caress didn't stop there but continued up her arm to her neck. His touch continued feather like as his fingers traced around her ear, along her jaw bone, each of her lips, across her cheek, up to the outer edge of her eye and back to her ear. At the same time his warm breath marked the same path pausing at her lips.