Romance with a twist...of fate. Fate has taken my cognitive skills...
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May 18, 2016
#amwriting
Most of you know, but maybe some don't, I am currently working on my second book in a time travel series. Don't worry the first one isn't out yet and I won't go shopping it around until at least the second one is finished in rough draft form. But I just hung a guy in my novel. Yes, you read that right, I hung a guy for horse stealing. In the local laws defense it was his horse that was stolen and they don't have the loot he stole from the stagecoach. But all is not lost, my protagonist is on the trail of the loot. Just wanted to let you know how I'm fairing in my novel so off I go to ride to the rescue of my protagonist. Does she really need saving? Only a read will show it to you.
May 14, 2016
Saturday Sampler - more Live, Love, Repeat
Did last week snippet throw you? Want more?
"Porsche."
Porsche turned to her Grandma. "It's time, shoshkin."
"Time
for what?" Porsche felt strangely calm and at peace.
"You
need to decide."
"Decide
what?" Porsche asked trying to understand the rush of thoughts and emotions
coming at her from everywhere.
"Your
time has come. You have arrived here a little early, but that too has its
advantages." Sophie's thoughts peacefully showed Porsche her options.
"You may stay here or you may go back."
Porsche
didn't need to ask what she would be going back to. Sophie's thoughts left no
room for misunderstanding. Porsche would be welcome to stay in this wonderful
place for as long as she wished, or she could return to her body.
"But
I'm not done." Porsche stated the facts, not to argue but in concern for
those she'd left behind.
"Shoshkin,
why do you believe you aren't finished?"
Dad
needed someone to continue riding the horses so that they would be fit and
ready for the fall hunt. Mom needed someone to help her with the house and her
usual fall canning. Mercedes? Porsche had made a promise to herself that she
would find a man for Mercedes to marry. In the process she had found Trevor and
fallen in love. Trevor needed her. All these reasons and more flooded her mind.
Someone didn't necessarily mean her; she'd merely assumed it would be her. She
bowed her head with the only valid reason she could put into words.
"I
haven’t said good-bye."
"Few
do, my precious shoshkin. Those who do,
don't feel they've said enough or they have said it too often. Be at peace
child, this is only a short interim."
Porsche
wanted to argue, wishing she had learned from her mother how to make her point.
Sophie smiled as though she understood and Porsche realized that Sophie could
understand her thoughts and feelings, just as Porsche could understand Sophie.
"It
isn't just the good-byes." Porsche pointed out. "I haven't had the
chance to introduce my sister to him."
Sophie
smiled, giving Porsche that motherly knowing look that said more than words
could. "You're sure your reason isn't selfish? Would you really give him
up if you had the choice?"
Porsche
considered the question, somehow knowing that Sophie sensed her emotional ties
to those she'd left behind better than she did herself.
"Honestly?"
Porsche wanted to avoid the truth.
"Honestly."
"I'm
not sure." Porsche didn't think she could admit the truth aloud, even if
she could admit it to herself.
"Very well, since you need to be sure of your decision, you are given
time to decide. Don't take too long. But I must warn you, this may be
painful." Sophie showed her a quiet hospital room. Ilene sat in a chair,
staring at a still form. She looked more closely and recognized her body. Ilene
wiped at her tears, humming softly
May 7, 2016
Saturday Sampler - more Live, Love, Repeat
Thick
and heavy darkness enshrouded Porsche. She tried to sit up. Excruciating pain
burst from her neck to every extremity. She screamed in agony not knowing or
caring if anyone heard her.
"Tre--"
her mouth refused to form his name. Someone help me, she begged into the
suffocating darkness. Terror took hold of her, cold and merciless. Indifferent
to her needs. She shivered causing shattering shards of pain to dart through
her. If only she could move. She tried again but her hands didn't respond to
her thought to bring them to her mouth to blow warming breath on them. The
chill enveloped her, sending her body into spasms of shivers and knives of
pain. Stop shivering, she told herself but her body didn't obey her command.
Torturing agony coursed through her. She retreated into the darkness that
haunted her.
May 5, 2016
I've always wondered how someone got a ♪ to show up on what they were typing... so now I know alt key and 1 3. And all these others. Just press the ALT key and then the number on the keypad to the right.
™ is the 0153
© is the 0169
® is the 0174
° is the 0176
± is the 0177
¶ is the 0182
¾ is the 0190
× is the 0215
¢ is the 0162
¡ is the 0161
¿ is the 0191
☺ is the 1
☻ is the 2
☼ is the 15
♀ is the 12
♂ is the 11
Pretty cool huh? there are more.
♠ is the 6
♣ is the 5
♥ is the 3
♦ is the 4
♫ is the 14
√ is the 251
↑ is the 24
↓ is the 25
→is the 26
← is the 27
↕ is the 18
↔ is the 29
There are a couple more that don't work on my computer. they are:
Nary summation which is 8721
and infinity which is 8236
Try these out for yourself! You'll at least have a little fun!
™ is the 0153
© is the 0169
® is the 0174
° is the 0176
± is the 0177
¶ is the 0182
¾ is the 0190
× is the 0215
¢ is the 0162
¡ is the 0161
¿ is the 0191
☺ is the 1
☻ is the 2
☼ is the 15
♀ is the 12
♂ is the 11
Pretty cool huh? there are more.
♠ is the 6
♣ is the 5
♥ is the 3
♦ is the 4
♫ is the 14
√ is the 251
↑ is the 24
↓ is the 25
→is the 26
← is the 27
↕ is the 18
↔ is the 29
There are a couple more that don't work on my computer. they are:
Nary summation which is 8721
and infinity which is 8236
Try these out for yourself! You'll at least have a little fun!
April 30, 2016
Saturday Sampler - more from Live, Love, Repeat
Trevor
needed to get Porsche off his mind. If he couldn't get her off of his mind, he
at least had to get out of the same household. Long, hard hours of work might
be the solution.
Setting
up camp didn't help, especially when it came to pitching his tent. If he closed
his eyes, he could almost smell her on the fabric which in turn engendered his
longing to hold her. If she were to visit him here at his camp with no one
around… He would make a teasing comment. She'd stick out her deliciously pink
tongue. He'd be waiting and reward her with a passionate kiss. One kiss would
lead to more and those kisses could easily give him reason to share his tent
for something other than sleeping. She hadn't been at the hardware store when
he'd returned for the tent, but he'd acted on impulse and purchased an air
mattress then as well. That would take care of the unwelcome rocks.
He
picked up the journal but didn't read it. Instead he verbalized his commitment.
"I will move the boulder and somehow I will share my feelings with
Porsche, or die trying."
Waking
from a night of troubled sleep, he stuffed a chunk of jerky in his shirt pocket
and filled his canteen before climbing the slope with the new shovel and
breaking bar across his shoulders. He stopped to drop the breaking bar on the
ground before turning his attention to the bush nearest the stream. It would
have to come out in order to get to the boulder behind it. He set the canteen
in the stream allowing the cold, running water to cool the drinking water.
Trevor
relished the hours of strenuous work and the attention required keeping the
branches from whipping against his arms as he dug. The rocky ground slowed his
progress. He stopped for a drink, pouring a small amount over his hands and
onto the ground. It occurred to him that if he dug a trench around the bush and
diverted the water, it would soften the ground, and he could possibly pull the
bush out with his truck.
He
dug the trench with renewed energy, making a dam with shovelful after shovelful
of mud and rocks, temporarily altering a portion of the stream's course. Once
the stream found its new course, Trevor reclined in the nearby shade to tend it
and eat his jerky. When the stream threatened to overflow its new boundaries,
he thrust the shovel blade into packed dirt, loosening the temporary dam. Some
water remained for the ground to absorb.
April 23, 2016
Sample Saturday
More for Live, Love, Repeat. Enjoy!
"I'm
sorry Porsche," Trevor murmured, touching her.
She
shivered.
"I
didn't realize, I didn't mean what I said. You've been wonderful to help me.
Please reconsider."
Porsche
sniffled.
"Porsche,"
he moved his hands to offer her his support.
"Don't
touch me," she twisted away from him.
He
took a big step toward her, wrapping his arms around her. She struggled against
him, writhing to free herself. "I won't force you, Porsche. Go to your
happy place."
"I
don't want that happy place," she snarled, still struggling.
"No
one will hurt you there."
"You
will."
"I
won't. I promise," Trevor soothed, trying to get her to stop fighting him.
"How
can I trust you again?" she gasped.
"Tell
me about your happy place."
"I
can't," she rasped.
"Tell
me so I can help you go there again." Why was she fighting him like this?
It didn't make sense.
"You
don't want me there. And I don't want to be there." She stood with her
head down, her arms hanging limp.
"Why
wouldn't I want you to go to your happy place?"
"You
don't want me in your arms. You want me on horseback," she whispered.
Trevor
gulped. Did she just say her happy place
is in my arms? A sense of pride welled up in him. She cared enough about
him to consider him safe. He'd wanted her to trust him but hadn't expected
this.
"Of
course…" Trevor turned her to him. He pulled her to him. He needed to man
up and reassure her. "I want you here."
Cautiously,
he pulled her closer to him, her nose nearly squished against him. She turned
her head to accommodate his embrace.
The
horses nickered in the heavy sunlight, its heat radiating off the blackened
rocks marking the edge of the butte.
He
kissed her brow, causing her hat to slip backwards and fall to the ground again.
"I'm honored that you would, if only for a moment, consider my arms a safe
place to give you strength to overcome your fears."
"It
wasn't your arms that were my safe place." Stunned, he released her enough
for her to slip from his arms to retrieve her hat. "The way you were
holding me just reminded me of my dad. His arms have always been my safe place.
I'm always safe with him, even when I'm hurt, I know he'll keep me safe."
"Oh."
The previous pride her words had engendered in Trevor dropped, smashing his ego
with calloused precision.
"Besides,
I'm not frightened of riding anymore. You helped me back there and I thank
you."
"You're
welcome…" Like he was about to let her put him on the roller coaster of this
conversation. Not.
"It
isn't safe up there in the ravine," she stated.
"Why
not?" At least she had changed the subject to a more stable topic.
"There's
a nest of rattlers near there. They like to come out of their hiding places to
warm themselves. By now they'll probably be hiding in the shade to normalize
their temperatures and that is when they are the most dangerous. A horse stirs
them up and they coil to strike."
Seriously?
Rattlesnakes? He refused to let her unnerve him. "But we'll hear them
rattle."
"Not
always."
"So
we'll skirt the ravine and I'll explore it another day." He wanted to
chide her for yet another excuse, one of her many. The chicken coop, work, horses difficult to be caught, fear of riding,
and now rattlesnakes. Stay calm…and in control.
"Fine,
but don't call me if your horse bucks you off and you get bit by a
rattler."
"I
really doubt that I'll get thrown. I haven't been thrown since I was a kid and
that was because the horse refused at a jump. Neither of these two has dumped
me yet." He mentally scowled himself for revealing any of his past.
"You've
only ridden Buck."
"Not
really. I've been schooling both of these boys since your dad said I could ride
them. You remember the night he asked you to go riding with me, don't
you?"
Porsche's
jaw dropped. "That's why…"
Victory! He let a wry smile curl the corner of
his lips. "They were in the short pen, easier to catch, the farrier arrived
this morning, and they are a bit easier to ride… Your dad said 'yes' if I was
willing to 'do the dirty work' so to speak. I was, and I did. It wasn't too terribly
dirty and it's done. Now we can continue our ride. Are you willing to?"
Trevor returned to his maps, gathering them. He folded them and stuffed them
back into the saddlebag. She better be willing, or he'd somehow make her.
"Yes,
I will ride. Just not up there by that snake pit."
Not
the answer he hoped for, but it wasn't a complete 'no'. He waited for her to
mount before leading the way down the narrow path. They went slow, allowing the
horses to pick their way. Leaving the trail and riding on the hillside rather
than the steep trail, Trevor looked back at her. If he could get her to really
enjoy the ride, would she bend her firm resolve? She acted confident in the
saddle, was she?
"You
feel like stretching their legs?"
"Um…"
Porsche stammered.
Stay close to her and she'll give me
another excuse. No way I'm taking any more of them. Trevor urged Buck into a gallop,
pushing for the lone cottonwood. He overtook it before pulling Buck up. She
wasn't anywhere close. He'd wait in the shade while she moseyed her way to him.
Maybe she was afraid of riding or maybe she was a real good actress, but he
came up here for a reason and it wasn’t to spend his day explaining his motives
or coercing her.
The
female was downright irritating. Sure, she wanted to be held and coddled, but
only when it suited her. When it didn't suit her she had dozens of excuses. He
should have seen her game from the beginning. She probably ran a daily log of
why a smile in his direction would break her. Oh, I already smiled for three customers. I can't possible spare even
one more for Trevor. Oh, we can't go riding today. I'm scared I'll break
another nail.
Porsche
came into view, keeping Duke at a stilted walk.
"What
happened to you? I thought we were going to stretch their legs."
"Stretch
their legs, yes. Run out of control, no."
Run out of control. Another excuse. He had full control
of Buck the whole time. What was her problem? He kept himself busy with his
internal dialogue and tuned in when she mentioned 'herd fever.'
"I didn't think of that. Ralph said Buck would be the difficult one
and he was." Trevor had focused on getting Duke to respond to his cues.
He'd succeeded but apparently all his hard work had been for not, by the sound
of it. He would like to ride Duke and
learn if this was just another excuse from her. "I never even considered
that Duke would follow him without regard to his rider. I'm sorry. Do you want
to trade horses?"
April 19, 2016
Snippet form my WIP (work in progress)
I just have to share this. How different do you thing getting water in a water trough for horses has changed in a hundred years? Think of it. They used to pump the water, and now they just turn on a hose?
They are both the same, right?
The one in the upper photo is today's spigot that you would find in a barn yard. The lower phot is an antique. Both have handles that you lift for the water. The modern one is a lift slowly until the water comes out at the desired rate. The lower one needs to be pumped, or primed. different for a character from the 1880's to deal with don't you think? Yeah, that is what I thought too. You'll have to wait for my time travel novel to come out to see what happens!
April 16, 2016
Saturday Snippet from Live,Love,Repeat
I'm going to try to make this interesting by posting some excerpts from previous novels and my current WIP (work in progress). Let's start with an excerpt from Live,Love, Repeat which is available in the Amazon bookstore.
Trevor
adjusted his goggles and jumped. He might as well have dived into liquid ice.
The bone chilling water enveloped him, slicing through his flesh with numbing
clarity. The painful cold caused every hair on his body to stand on end and set
his teeth to chattering. His breath effectively stolen by the freezing water,
he managed to fight to the surface of the pool.
He
stared at his work crew in shock, unable to think of a single cuss word.
"Cold,
ain't it hombre?" Rufus, the only Mexican on the crew asked. Rufus stood a
mere five feet four inches tall, with jet black hair in careless disarray, his
typical work uniform of jeans and baggy tee shirt threadbare, but clean. He
held Trevor's towel in a crumpled wad of disheveled terry cloth. Trevor eyed
the towel, anxious to wrap himself in its warmth.
He
tried to glare at each of his three employees in turn. Was his face frozen solid? His eyes seemed the only organs still
responding to brain impulses. No wonder the guys refused to inspect the pools. What had he been thinking? He'd been
thinking of how to get a jump on the competition and save his floundering
company at the same time. The company, his legacy and inheritance upon his
father's passing, or rather forty-nine percent of it. His mother, in
conjunction with the stockholders, owned the other fifty-one percent.
Trevor
had shown a propensity for designing pools early in his life and over the years
his father had made Trevor's drawings a reality with several of the pools
installed in the greater Las Vegas area. Trevor much preferred designing to
installing or maintaining. Conceiving, planning and drawing were the part of
the business Trevor did best. Running a crew proved his downfall last summer.
If he couldn't manage these guys they might all end-up unemployed. He had to
find a way to prove to himself, his mother, and the stockholders his value as
more than a rich, spoiled screw up.
The
outdoor temperature in the sun at this hour boasted 52°F and rising. Not bad
for a brisk walk, but not the overly warm triple digits this same pool area
would harbor in three month’s time. People wanted to use their pools as soon as
the temperatures hit the low eighties which required inspecting and repairing
the pools in cooler temperatures.
"Ready
to get out Boss-man?" Brodie, the smart-aleck on the crew, crossed his
arms over his chest. Not an easy feat for a guy with a chest circumference of
fifty plus inches and arms to match.
Anxious
to get out of this fix without losing face should have been Trevor's first
concern, but survival preempted his faulty leadership skills. His gaze fell on
Darin, the youngest man on the crew and Brodie's 'little' brother. Both
brothers wore Under Armour and jeans for work this morning. Brodie often beat
Darin's tender hearted emotions out of him whether physically or by shear
intimidation of muscle and strength. Even so, Darin didn't let Trevor down this
time.
"Guys,"
Darin hesitantly pleaded. "His lips are turning blue. Shouldn't we help
him out?"
Brodie
dropped his arm, his palm toward Darin as if to catch him with an underhand
swing. "Not 'til he admits we aren't 'girly-men.' What do you say Trevor?
Are we being 'girly-men' for refusing to jump into these unheated pools for
another month or so?"
Chilled
to the bone, Trevor did his best to swim toward the pool steps at the shallow
end of the pool. As soon as he thought he could reach, he put his feet down to
touch the bottom of the pool. Had the guys warned him the cement owned colder
temperatures than the icy water he would have laughed. Now he could barely gasp
in shock.
January 15, 2016
Review for The Suspects Daughter
Jocelyn
Fairley is adamant in seeing her father attain the position of Prime Minister. Grant
Amesbury is dead set on proving Mr. Farley’s connection to the Prime Ministers
intended demise. Both have no aim at each other,they are just at odds with one another. Donna Hatch has a way of tying you to a story line and her
main characters effortlessly. She has done so with this one as well. I love the
way I was able to step into Jocelyn’s shoes right from the get-go. She
intertwines Jocelyn’s desire with Grants story goal leaving you wondering
whether you should cheer for Jocelyn or for the dark persona of Grant. I
strongly recommend this book to readers of all ages.
Character Casting
Always wearing a cheerful and sometimes impish smile, Jocelyn is a
lively blue-eyed blond of about twenty one, who has a lush figure but thinks
she's unfashionably plump.
Tall and dark with serious gray eyes that are often snapping with
sarcasm, Grant is gorgeous but has such a hard edge that he can't be
considered classically handsome. A long, ragged scar mars the entire right
side of his face, giving him a formidable appearance. But on the rare event he
smiles, he transforms into heart-stoppingly stunning.
Snippets
He’d have to walk a fine line between getting close
enough to the family to covertly investigate the father without giving them any
reason to believe he’d be a desirable match for the daughter. He was completely
out of his element. He’d have to be polite. It was so much easier to be rude to
people so they’d leave him alone, and people generally gave him so many reasons
to insult them.
***
Softly, slowly, she reached up and touched his scar
with one finger. He held his breath but didn’t pull away. She traced the raised
smooth pink line from the corner of his eye down to his jaw. What would make
such a ragged injury? It looked torn rather than cut with a blade.
Her attention focused on his mouth. Would a man like
him kiss roughly, like his hard exterior, or would he be gentle, like the soft
heart she’d seen in brief glimpses in between the chinks of his emotional
armor?
URL Links
Official Facebook
Event page:
Author Social Media
Links:
http://donnahatch.com/
http://www.amazon.com/Donna-Hatch/e/B002BMG9KK/
https://www.facebook.com/DonnaHatch.Author
https://twitter.com/donnahatch
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2072970.Donna_Hatch
http://www.amazon.com/Donna-Hatch/e/B002BMG9KK/
https://www.facebook.com/DonnaHatch.Author
https://twitter.com/donnahatch
https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/2072970.Donna_Hatch
Book Buy Links
January 4, 2016
Update
Alrighty, it's time to update you on what's going on in my life.
The first thing is that I have a Dragon and I have now trained it--- kind of, sort of. Well you'll see what I mean.
The next thing is that I have received this morning a rejection letter for Halfback Hero from Shadow Mountain. That's okay though because I am waiting fingers crossed for now but another publisher. And hopefully they'll come to agree with me that Halfback Hero is worth publishing.
On another score, I have just received back from my number one beta reader the first book of my Talisman Series, I will now look into that folder and see what I need to change.
On the other hand, the second book in that series is going well I'm 26,000 words in and know where I'm going from here.
So that's what is happening with this author at the first of this year. Wishing you all a Happy New Year.
The first thing is that I have a Dragon and I have now trained it--- kind of, sort of. Well you'll see what I mean.
The next thing is that I have received this morning a rejection letter for Halfback Hero from Shadow Mountain. That's okay though because I am waiting fingers crossed for now but another publisher. And hopefully they'll come to agree with me that Halfback Hero is worth publishing.
On another score, I have just received back from my number one beta reader the first book of my Talisman Series, I will now look into that folder and see what I need to change.
On the other hand, the second book in that series is going well I'm 26,000 words in and know where I'm going from here.
So that's what is happening with this author at the first of this year. Wishing you all a Happy New Year.
December 24, 2015
December 22, 2015
December 20, 2015
December 16, 2015
December 14, 2015
December 12, 2015
December 11, 2015
December 8, 2015
Ten things our youth are facing that we might not know of...
10. Single Parent Households
The problems begin at
home. Since the 1950s, the number of single
parent homes has consistently increased to the point of catastrophe. Today, 14
million single parents are responsible for 28 million children. Raising a child
is difficult enough in a two parent home, especially in tough economic
conditions.
The situation is even
direr when there is only one parent. Economically, a single parent is likely to
bring less income home. This equates to fewer opportunities for such vital
necessities as education. Trying to make ends meet also takes time – time that
is spent away from children who need a parent’s guiding/influence. Absent a
parent’s diligent guidance, children become subject to higher dropout rates,
higher risk of dangerous sexual behaviors and pregnancies, higher chances of
drug and alcohol abuse –etc. It truly takes a village to raise a child.
9. Drug/Alcohol Abuse
There was a time in
cinematic history where virtually every actor/actress was portrayed on screen
with a cigarette in hand. Smoking, it was implied, was cool. As a result
everyone was doing it, including kids. Well, as awareness to the danger of
smoking increased, “cool” images of smoking disappeared. Unfortunately, the
same can’t be said about drugs and alcohol. These vices are staples in everyday
media. Simply, drinking and using drugs is shown as being cool.
The numbers bear the
tale. 21% of high school seniors say they get high and 41% of the same group
report drinking alcohol. Our kids are literally moving around in an intoxicated
daze. Immature behavior is then amplified due to being under the
influence. Drunk driving, poor grades and
attendance, anti-social and violent behavior and the list goes on.
8. Growing up too Fast
There was a time when
kids enjoyed being kids. Today, even at the earliest of ages, children are
partaking in adult activities with serious consequences. Similar to what we see
with alcohol and drugs, sex is a very popular and portrayed subject matter. The
movies, TV, the internet, essentially everywhere a kid turns he or she is
bombarded with sexual suggestions.
In fact, there are entire
TV series marketed directly to kids dealing with sex – the egregious being The
Secret Lives of an American Teenager and Teen Mom, to name two. Music is a
culprit as well. Songs have always had sexual innuendos, but at least “back in
the day” you had to be old enough to understand them. Today, it’s all about
“How low can you go” and “baby let me sex you up.” Kids are having sex as early
as 10 and 11, with teen pregnancies increasingly on the rise. The concept of
childhood is literally being wiped out.
7. Violence in Schools
A child’s education is
the foundation from which he or she will be able to go forth out into the world
and build a life. Schools play a major role in this endeavor, and therefore it
is reasonable to expect that these places of learning would be safe havens for
the children while they are preparing for adulthood. Unfortunately, this is not
always the case.
In many instances,
especially in low income, urban settings, schools can be a war zone. We are not
talking about minor bullying, but rather serious violence. Consider that in the
last decade 284 kids were murdered due to school violence – these were shootings, stabbings, fighting and suicides. Growing up is tough enough
without having to be worried about being killed while going to math class.
6. Materialism
We live in a society that
promotes materialism and so we perpetuate this particular malady by
instilling bad habits into our children.
We teach our children that the measure of success and happiness in life is how
much stuff you have. Kids naturally want things –especially if their friends
have something similar. Unfortunately, there seems to be little restraint on
accompanying guidance as we go about this.
Essentially, we provide
our kids with whatever they want that is within our financial ability to do so.
The concept of “earning” what you get or the idea that something “you don’t
need” seem to have been lost and discarded. Is there really any wonder why the
average adult is $15,000 in debt at any given time? We have a mentality of
getting what we want and when we want it that has been ingrained in us since
childhood. The unfortunate result is that there are devastating consequences
for such continued behavior later in life.
5. Obesity
Our kids are fat and
getting fatter. Recent numbers show that 20% of American children are obese.
Not chubby –OBESE! Video games, TV, the internet and fast food are partly to
blame. Kids are spending more time sitting in front of a TV/computer screen
than running around outside. This sedentary lifestyle has consequences.
Socially, it’s no secret
that overweight kids are going to be subject to ridicule from their peers –
it’s sad, but nevertheless true. This can result in such issues as low
self-esteem, depression, etc. Then there are the health concerns. High blood
pressure, diabetes and other maladies that is associated with obesity.
Psychologically and physically, obesity is an issue that can be resolved with a
simple increase in activity and awareness.
4. Education Disparity
Education is important.
Few people would dispute this well regarded fact. A good
education(in
comparison with a bad one) will provide a child with an increased chance of
taking advantage of opportunities to be successful in life. Unfortunately, some
people have it better than other. This is not an issue of just one school being
better than another school. Rather we are talking about whole classes of
American children being denied a proper education that will prepare them to
compete in a job market with their peers and have the same access to the
American Dream.
Disparity in educational
quality is delineated by race and financial status. If you live in a poor
neighborhood or are a minority, there is a good chance that the schools you
attend are lacking many necessities. While Asians and Whites enjoy high
graduating rates, African American and Latinos continue to lag behind. Not
surprisingly, because job opportunities are lessen for dropouts, these two
groups have the highest incarceration rates.
3. Shifting Economy
America used to sustain
itself with making its own products through manufacturing and then t2urning
around and selling those products. The economy is shifting to more of a service
industry versus a manufacturing industry. In order to cut costs and keep
product prices down companies are forced to outsource manufacturing to other countries.
Other countries can produce products at much lower labor costs. Some companies
have even begun to outsource call center jobs to keep labor costs down. Not only
is America now having lower paying service jobs than the average blue-collar
job with a sustainable income but our economy is now a global economy.
For example, what happens
in Japan or Iraq can drastically alter prices for our stock exchanges, gas/oil,
and many other products. What exactly does this mean for our youth? The youth
cannot graduate or even dropout of school without going through the pains of a
low-income job. The jobs offered with no experience pay very little with very
little room for pay increases. In fact, the competition to get a promotion can
be fierce. In the past, your high school senior could graduate and go work at
the local factory for the rest of his or her life and make a good living. They
would not necessarily need to have a college education to survive. In fact,
youth today will graduate from college with multiple degrees and still cannot
find work that pays enough to sustain a decent lifestyle.1
2. Poverty
The federal poverty level
is $22,050 for a family of four. This equates to 21% of all children (15
million children) are considered in poverty. Just to cover basic expenses for a
family of four you would need to have a salary of $45,000. This means that
nearly 50% of our children are living in poverty. Half of those kids receive no
government assistance because their parents earned more than $22,050 that year.
According to the National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP), that poverty
is the single greatest threat to children’s well-being.
Poverty impedes learning
and contributes to social and behavioral problems. And guess what? There is no
income to counteract these problems. Mommy cannot afford a tutor or Daddy cannot afford a counselor.
There is a huge opportunity for society to stop being so materialistic and in
turn poverty wouldn’t be such an issue because most children will all have the
same things –things they need instead of what they want. This would decrease
violence in schools because fewer kids would be teased.
1. Erosion of National Pride/Identity
If every year the
Olympics were held, this probably wouldn’t be a problem. This list is
indicative of the fact that America (like any nation) has problems. The issue
at hand is collective though amongst the people affected about how to deal with
them. Unfortunately most folks tend to focus on their self and not the whole.
We see these problems as affecting “them” and not “me/us” When we hear that
America’s children are the fattest among Western nations, this doesn’t sting.
When we learn that America’s children lay educationally behind other
industrialized nations, we don’t cringe.
There is very little
sense of collective identity of people, as Americans. This is a result of our
children not being properly educated and guided. There was a time when every
child would begin the school day by standing and reciting the Pledge of
Allegiance. Children were taught the significance of the 4th of July (besides
fireworks). These practices are long gone and so is our sense of common
destiny. With so many diverse nationalities, races, and ethnic groups that
comprise America, the one common bond we all have with one another is
that we are Americans.
November 26, 2015
November 21, 2015
I'm just saying that sometimes I feel this way. Like the one getting slapped and sometimes like the one doing the slapping.
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/47/b7/b2/47b7b28021ecfee6be1551bdaeef4a96.gif
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/47/b7/b2/47b7b28021ecfee6be1551bdaeef4a96.gif
November 12, 2015
Fall Update
As an update I'm currently working on a piece for my Time-travel Series. One that I hope will see publication. I also have my newest New Adult Romance out to publishers Halfback Hero. Will the publisher pick it up? I don't know but we will wait and see!
October 14, 2015
5 keys to Mastery
Key #1: Surrender to your passion. Do what you love. Be an open vessel and thus open to possibilities. Intellectual sensuality… Use your imagination in an effective way. Allow your thought process to run free. Think something that you didn’t expect and you get something unexpected and more profound. When you push the pause button you can see the big picture and are able to see what you need to do with your energy to affect those around you in a grand way. Pause it, crystalize your existence and do something about it. Figure out your role and do it with grace. You always have a true friend in your passion.
Key #2: Practice, practice, practice! Tenacity and practice is the magic formula. Don’t feel that the day to day mundane things are distancing you from your dreams. Everything you do brings you closer to your dreams. It’s just a mindset. The greatest masters are those that don’t get discouraged when they find themselves on a plateau, instead they keep continuing along that plateau knowing eventually they are destined to have a jump up towards their goals and dreams.
Key #3: Have a teacher or mentor. You don’t have to do it alone. Inspire by example and find inspiration in the examples of others.
Key #4: Visualize the outcome. Make it real and present in the realm of your consciousness as if it has already happened. All consciousness exists… if you think it you can make it happen but visualize that it is happening NOW and not that it WILL happen or that you would LIKE it to happen. Meditate on how you see it happening. Visualize it as a done deal.
Key #5: Play the edge. Comfort is the enemy. Use the negativity to fuel your fire and energize and motivate yourself. Expose yourself and take the risk. To take a risk is to truly be free.
June 19, 2015
Live, Love, Repeat Give Away
Check out my free give away for Live, Love, Repeat. You don't want to miss this!
The give away ends June 26th, 2015. http://t.co/cupoeeZjvy
June 11, 2015
My Man! Time Machine Needed
Short submitted to True Writer
byline: Erin Murdock
byline: Erin Murdock
My daughter is at that stage in her
life when she's shopping for the biggest investment she will ever make -- the
man of her dreams, her true love, her husband. Hopefully, with a little luck, a
good measure of prayer, and careful research and consideration, these three
will all be one in the same. It makes the shopping easier in the long run. Up
close and personal, I'm grateful I've only done it once and I quite
frankly--through dumb luck, I fell into it!
Mind you, I didn't fall in love
with him. That kind of love is for romance novels and movies. No, I grew into
that part of the relationship and I've found myself needing to work on it quite
a few times since. Back to my daughter and her shopping. I've listened to her
relate how wonderful one is -- only for her to recant her endorsement after
considering additional intel. I must admit it usually takes her longer to
gather the necessary intel to flush the "buggers" than I would like.
This morning as I'm relaxing from
my yoga stretches she lobs this at me. "Mom, why are guys so #$%&
stupid and such jerks?"
I inhale and exhale through my
mouth. She takes it as exacerbation, which it's not. "Sweetheart, you've
grown up with Mary Poppins. Do you remember '…though we adore them
individually, we agree that as a whole their rather stupid?"
"Yeah. So where did you find
Dad?" Obviously, this is one that we adore.
"I didn't find him. He found
me." I didn't remind her that it happened to be on the baseball field. She
knows that story. I did add this though. "I believe they broke the mold
after they made him. But even if they didn't, you'd have to go back to the
fifties when he was born to find one."
"So, you got a time machine
handy?"
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This wreath I just finished. For sale at $25.00. Comment if you are interested in buying or if you were looking at another of my creations! ...
