My gentleman friend is so wonderful to me!! Knowing I’m stuck in quaratine for a bit longer, he purposefully made a trip out to his house in the country. It belonged to his late mother, and he inherited it so no comments from the peanut gallery please.
He knows how much I enjoy going out there to spend time in the country with him. It’s so peaceful and secluded you can actually relax and unwind fully. You can barely hear the highway many miles away – sound carries out there. The sound of birds usually draws your attention away.
It’s early spring here so he’s out there opening the house to air it after being closed up against the cold. He’s also begun moving the grass since all the rain has helped it grow high. He’s not mowing it all down because momma deer will be leaving their babies in the high grass while they go foraging. He found two fawns in the high grass last year when he first started mowing so this year, he’s leaving spots open for the moms.
He took photos and some video as well as a sound recording, but I was only able to share some of the photos on here. The videos were of butterflies and dragonflies moving about parts of the pasture. I’m sure you would’ve liked them. I think, because of this, I am going to be moving my blog from WordPress.com to WordPress.org just as soon as I can. I’ll have a lot more freedom and won’t have to pay an arm and a leg for it.
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
First off, I love the name of the blog. It’s very evocative. Don’t you think so?
The blog is bold and doesn’t hold back. I find it’s a delicious feast of words and imagery. I followed a “Click Me” plea (something I don’t usually do), and it led me to a place where I can buy some pretty cool blog related swag! TETIANA ALEKSINA & TONY SINGLE are the ones apparently in charge of the literary asylum, and I encourage you to take a trip! You can go here to step through the doors. I dare you. I double dog dare you. NO, I TRIPLE dog dare you!! LOL I don’t think you’ll regret it.
I really am quite taken with this blog. It’s uncensored so not for anyone under 16, at least. No, I didn’t find any porn on there, but this site encourages open and honest, fearless speech. It exorts you to share your thoughts and ideas in whatever form they take, raw or polished.
Vulgarity becomes rich prose as it bares the soul of the writer speaking in their most natural way. Pain becomes a salve that heals. The raw becomes refined in the waters of acceptance and encouragement to share. I wax a bit poetic perhaps, but I’m allowed. I highly recommend this blog, and I hope you will feel free to share some of your own work to it. I am thinking of doing that very thing when I have some time.
I’ve been writing for Textbroker off and on for several years now. Mostly off since I’ve had other things I’d been doing. It’s not going to make you a lot of money if you don’t work at it. Until recently, it wasn’t something I had time to do. Now, I have the time, and I have the desire.
Textbroker has a rating system which puts authors into categories. You can only choose jobs in your category, but you can see what jobs are being offered in other categories. All jobs have their pay posted, and it’s non-negotiable. The payments are posted to your account as soon as the job is accepted by the client who posted it.
Payments are done only through Payoneer, from what I’ve learned. They’ve had other payment options over the years, and they’re always looking to make things better for everyone while keeping everything safe and legitimate. They do require a W-9 form to be filled out and filed with them.
There are a variety of ways to get jobs. You can look at the general postings, and you can join teams. I have been invited to join several teams, but there is an option for you to request to join any one you like. These teams have jobs not posted in the general list – they are for team members only.
Most jobs are articles, website content and the like. The most I’ve had to write is 500 words, and I was paid about $6. It’s not much for a single job, but it pays better than many I’ve seen, for this size job. I was offered about the same, on another site, for a job that required me to write 3000 words. I told them what I was making on Textbroker and politely declined the job offer.
This site is great for those who are brand new to freelancing as you get to choose the jobs you want to do, in your category, and you don’t have to bid for them like on other sites. You get rated by submitting samples of your writing. The better the sample, the higher the rating you’ll get. I’ve never regretted joining this site, and I’m still getting plenty of work from it.
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!
This movie came out in 2016, and it’s original title suggested this was to be more than one movie. I have yet to see anything about a sequel, but it does explain the ending of the movie. The movie is a futuristic science fiction thriller written by Shane Abbess and Brian Cachia. It was produced by Eclectik Vision Studio.
The movie stars Kellan Lutz as Sy Lombrok; Daniel MacPherson as Lt. Kane Sommerville and Teagan Croft as Sommerville’s daughter, Indi. Other members of the cast are : Temuera Morrison, Isabel Lucas, Rachel Griffiths and Luke Ford.
Lt. Kane Sommerville works for an off world military contractor called Exor helping them terraform and colonize a new planet. There is a prison on the planet already, and the prisoners there are being used to help with terraforming. Or so everyone is being told… He is a father who never married his child’s mother and is always having to fight to get to see his daughter. He is working hard to improve his life so he can get legal access to his child.
Sy Lombrok is a prisoner on the planet. He was a trauma nurse, but he was made an example of after he broke public trust in his profession. His wife and daughters were brought into his ER after suffering a horrific car crash – his daughters were DOA and his wife died in front of him before they could help her. The drunk driver who caused the accident was brought into the same ER and when Sy found out, he killed him. Sy is haunted by the deaths of his loved one and doesn’t care about himself any more.
Indi Sommerville is a child who only wants to spend time with her dad. She’s bored on the planet, but she’s willing to wait until Kane is done working so they can visit. She’s staying planetside waiting on her dad to join her from the miliary flotilla in orbit above the planet where he lives.
Kane finds out everything is not what he’d been told, and he escapes the flotilla to try to rescue his daughter from the disaster striking the planet. He’s shot down, and he happens upon Sy who has managed to escape the prison with fellow inmates who have gone their own ways. Reluctantly, Sy agrees to help Kane get to the city and Indi. The pair don’t get along well, but they do manage to get to the city, with help from a couple in an armored bus. I can’t say more without giving things away.
The movie was okay. I’ve seen better, but I’ve also seen worse. Some of the action scenes were good. I empathized with Indi and Sy, not so much with Kane. The dialog was decent. Acting was pretty good. I like Indi’s work, but others with bit parts did fine jobs as well. The soundtrack was nice. I enjoyed it, and I think it added to the overall feel to the story. Costuming was great considering this was a non CGI movie. It’s made in Australia, and I think they did a bang up job making it look realistic and believable. Kudos to them!
I’d rate this movie a 3 star. I found it on Hulu so didn’t waste any money renting it. It’s a good time killer. I’m hoping there will be sequel but after all this time, I won’t hold my breath. Still, don’t take my word for it, check the movie out for yourself and make your own decision.
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!
This project didn’t turn out quite as well as I’d hoped, but what is wrong is a quick fix. I’ve decided to go ahead and share it. I found this pattern on a blog called Crochet Parfait over on Blogspot ages ago, but I’d never worked it up until this week. You can find the pattern here.
Full View
Pillow View
I used Heather Gray and White yarns from Red Heart. I ended up using one skein of the white, Super Saver size and five skeins of the gray yarn in Super Saver size. I didn’t know I had that much of the gray when I started, but I’m glad I did!
Hope you enjoyed this post as much as I enjoyed making the project. Let me know what you think please!
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
Since I’ve been stuck at home, I’ve been on Facebook more than normal. I’ve seen numerous posts with links to sites providing virtual tours of places. I checked out on today called Adentures in Familyhood which you can check out here.
This site has lots of kid friendly stuff which would be great if I were cooped up with a kid or two, but I’m not so I didn’t pay much attention to any of it. Still, it’s free so you should check it out if you have kids in isolation with you, or any time you have kids with you at home.
The tours are split up into groups, and there are at least three links in each group. At the end of each group are activities for you and the kids to do to help them learn and discuss what they saw on the tours.
The Louvre has three galleries in their virtual tour selection, and I really enjoyed visiting Le Petite Gallerie. It has an exhibit going on which includes sculpture and paintings by three of the old masters. The quality of the camera work is that of a professional movie! It was as if I was there. The moves between rooms as well as the 360 degree camera views are seamless. Lighting was fantastic too. I was so pleased with how it all looked, it was almost better than getting to see the exhibits! I can’t wait to get to Paris to see the Louvre myself!
I also checked out the Monterey Bay Aquarium virtual tour. It has several cams showing off their aquatic offerings. I watched the Kelp Forest cam for a while, and I liked how clear the picture was. Would’ve been nice if the view had been more focused on one window into the area thought. It was pulled back to show several panes of the aquarium, and I’m sure when people are around, the view is blocked.
There was an offering from Google as well. I got to see Pompei! It was a static virtual tour from ground level, but it was still better than nothing. I was able to move around in a 360 degree circle and move to other parts with mouse clicks. The picture quality was great too. I really enjoyed the tour. This is another place on my bucket list of places to visit when I can.
The last tour I went on was to the San Diego zoo. I checked out quite a few of the animal cams they have up. They’re all live but right now, they’re unmanned. This means you might not see an anumal when you check out the cam. I got to see penguins swimming, and condors moving about so it was worth checking out.
I’m going to be checking out more virtual tours when I can. Anything to keep myself busy and distracted… Feel free to share any virtual tour sites you know of!! I’ll be eternally grateful!!
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
I had some left over baby yarn from a baby blanket I’d done for a friend a while back. I decided there was too much left to add to a scrap yarn project so, I started looking for something else to make with it. I found a lovely site with all kinds of accent pillow patterns on it, but I decided just to make one muself.
The pillow is made entirely with half double crochet stitches. The piece was then folded over into thirds. The sides were sewn up, but the middle was left open with the top and bottom overlapping. This left a pocket opening for the 14 inch pillow insert I put in instead of using pillow stuffing. I didn’t get a picture of the back of the pillow, but I do have one of the front. 🙂
Striped Accent Pillow
I know the picture isn’t the greatest. I’m not a professional photographer, but I am learning to take better shots!
Let me know what you think!
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
The world is under attack by a virus – something that acts like the flu but is much worse. It hits people over 60 and those with chronic conditions that weaken their immune systems harder than anyone else. New cases pop up all the time it seems, and the death toll is rising. Countries are closing their borders, banning travel out of, into and through out their lands. The media is having a field day reporting only bad news and not really sharing the good news. The good news, more people have recovered from this virus than have died from it. You don’t hear about that though.
I am one of those who are “at risk” as I take a medication that suppresses my immune system. I tested positive for the virus, the COVID-19, and I’m on self isolation until I either recover or get worse which will mean quarantine at an air force base in Houston Texas, or possibly Beaumont. I haven’t asked about that because I don’t think I’m going to be that bad. I hope not at any rate.
Keeping Busy:
My Pretty Futon
This is what the futon in my livinroom looks like with my last two projects on it. The plush is the Valentine’s gift my gentleman friend got for me because he knows how much I like cats. He’s so sweet! I have decided to go through my bookmarks and make the projects on those pages. I have quite a few bookmarks so it’s going to take me a while. Currently, I have two afghans and a body pillow in the works. When I run out of yarn, I have crochet thread I can work with. 🙂
Work: I had to quit my job. Not just because I have an infectios virus but because I could get sick again working there. The company doesn’t provide paid sick days. It penalizes you for missing even a single day, and it doesn’t excuse more than one or two days even with doctor excuses. People come to work with the common cold, flu, bronchitis, even pneumonia with several I only heard about!! The place is kept cold, sure, but I am susceptible to even the smallest, most benign of these conditions. My doctor advised me I needed to find a different job or I risk getting sick again. The second time might not be so gentle on me.
Cooking:
Mediterranean style Pierogis
I found a recipe for pierogis online, and I love pierogis so I decided to make some. The recipe said I could use anything for the filling if I didn’t want to go traditional. I didn’t have any potatoes or sausage so, I used what I had. I diced up two different kinds of squash, some yellow onion and some mushrooms. I used ricotta cheese as well. The sauce is Tahini sauce, just a little thicker than what you find in restaurants. I love the smoky taste of the roasted sesame seed this sauce has, and it was perfect for the pierogis!! I’m going to make more when I can get more flour and some potatoes for a more traditional dish. Next experiment: Korean pancakes!!
Writing: I’m doing some freelance writing while I slowly put the second draft of Golden Knave on the computer. I don’t really like typing on a computer, but I’m getting better at it from all the stuff I’m doing. I’m learning a lot about freelancing, and I might write some posts about my experiences, if anyone is interested. Let me know, please.
Randomness: I tried watching Harrow, but I’m having a hard time relating to the man, Harrow, himself. I can’t stand his girlfriend, one of the others in the ensemble cast. I don’t like how she behaves. The rest of the cast is okay. I watched three episodes of Manifest and lost interest. I watched half of the first season of 9-1-1, and I like it.
I’ve also read the book before the newest one by J.D. Robb, and I’ll write a review for it soon.
I watched a couple of movies, The Osiris Child and the 10th Kingdom. I’ll write reviews for them too.
Not much else is going on right now since I’m stuck inside, but I’ll try to keep writing articles for you to read. 🙂
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
Seriously though, that is the name of a song performed by Timothy Wisdom in 2013. I had to look it up because the actual title I was thinking of was Panic at the Disco. Panic at the Disco is a band from around 2004. I was thinking they were older – the whole disco thing, you know.
I don’t know why that came into my head. It being 1am may have had something to do with it. Lol
While looking up what the title really was, I ended up going down a rabbit hole. I searched Danger at the Disco, and the video by Timothy Wisdom was the first one on the Google list. It’s on Youtube so I checked it out. It’s an interesting mix of techno and disco music. I’m not a big fan of disco, but the piece works.
There’s a list of videos recommended for you by Youtube, and I ended up watching the video for Who Wants to Live Forever by the Four Tenors feat. Lindsey Stirling. Of course, the list on the side changed to include clips from Doctor Who – the man who lives forever. Only he’s a woman in the current show. 🙂
I watched a series of the best five speeches made on Doctor Who by the Doctor, but I didn’t think one of them was the best he could’ve given. There are definitely better ones. I really love the rant by Peter Capaldi’s Doctor which he delivers not long after he’s regenerated and his brains are still a bit scrambled. His rant is about his looks, especially his eyebrows. Great stuff there!
Anyway, this led me to watching a compilation of all the regenerations the Doctor has gone through up to now. I still think his falling off an antenna and dieing was the stupidest reason for his death! It was very pedestrian for such a great man!
So you see, I went from a title I’d remembered wrong to a series of regenerations! You should’ve seen the rabbit hole I went down when I was researching David Tennant! I think I may have ended up in Wonderland, or the edges of it at any rate!
Well, it’s 2am, and I need to be getting some sleep.
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
I discovered this lovely site yesterday when I was doing some freelance work. This is an online magazine which “…focuses on narrative and growth through travel and exploration.” – Cargo Literary, About Us page first paragraph and first sentence.
That sentence right there, that part of the sentence actually, is what caught my attention. I’ve never heard of this kind of magazine before, but I don’t read many so, I could be wrong. Has anyone else seen or heard of this kind of magazine, online or in print?? This site offers up perspectives on personal growth through travel, at home and abroad which I think is fantastic!!
In this issue, there are three poems, two photo essays, a book review, two visual art submissions and three creative nonfiction works. All of these have something to do with personal growth and with travel. One of the photo essays is about the American West, and they are stunning!! The poetry is beautiful, especially the one by Marjory Woodfield called Thumairi Street. She evokes such imagery it’s almost as if I’m there!
I can’t wait for the next issue to come out so I can see what new things are offered!! Don’t take my word for it, check it out yourself!! Cargo Literary at : https://www.cargoliterary.com
See you on the flipside and don’t forget your towel and sonic screwdriver!!
Dedicated to discussing the craft & industry of dramatic writing, maintaining mental health, and the unsurprisingly large overlap between the two. Oh, and maybe some Beatles trivia.
Griffin's Nest 