Another Circle of Life-My Neighbor's Figs

 

During a normal, non-pandemic summer, we might go somewhere and miss out on all this glorious fruit! Harvesting, cooking and baking reminds me there's an upside to staying home, in our personal Eden, surrounded by friends, neighbors, and beautiful trees.

 If you've tasted fresh figs, you know how sweet and delicious they can be. The flavor is hard to describe, but I'd say it's like a bite of apple, plums and strawberries all mixed together into one incredible morsel. Magical! 

My neighbor's fig tree

That's not Eve, but my neighbor, picking figs from her tree.

Fresh Figs

Fresh Fig Bar

My First Podcast

The wonderful ladies at the After the After Show interviewed me about my books on their first Annual Marketing Palooza. This is an exciting way for readers to hear directly from authors about their novels. After an author writes a book, they spend hours revising, polishing, proofing, and editing their work. Soon, it seems the book is part of their life, like a baby about to be set free into the world. When it's finally published, they want to make sure it gets into the hands of people who will appreciate what they wrote. That's why this show is a great way for listeners to choose which books they want to take on vacation, or have on the bedside table. Readers have so many choices, and giving them a verbal and intimate menu is a great idea. Thank you!!  

While the hosts of the show, McKensie Stewart and Amy Shannon, sound cool, calm and collected, my mouth took a hold of my nerves and ran around my monkey brain looking for anything coherent to say. Fortunately, I only had two minutes to tell my story. (I'm last after this amazing group.)

Idelle Kursman-(Check out her website for a free magnet)

Amy Shannon-(Author, Editor & Book Reviewer)

Chris Karlsen(Ex-detective!)

Listen to it here: 

 The After Show with Eve

"Whatever we can do to help other authors."--Amy Shannon, Author of Unlawful Identity

Thank again you for having me on the show!

The Circle of (Apricot's) Life

 

March

June

July

Until next time....

Pinky Goes Bye-Bye!

 

Since some of you “met” Pinky through my blog, and some of you had the chance to actually meet her in person, I thought I should address the fact that she’s gone bye-bye. It’s so hard to type when your glasses are fogged up with tears.

 

 

Normally, I could write about Pinky all day long. 

She was a sweet, lovely soul and she loved going bye-bye.

Fiona and Pinky watching the world outside

Hopefully, Fiona will be waiting on the other side of the rainbow bridge.

A Few Exhilarating Book Reviews

 

 

I’ve read some wonderful books lately,

 and thought I’d share my reviews:

  Fishnets in the Far East

Michele E. Northwood

I don’t often read memoirs, but this one is different from your average life story. Michele is a young woman about to embark on a trip of a lifetime to South Korea, as part of a dance troupe called the Colliers. What transpires in her grueling six months of on and off again work, becomes a story filled with pain and suffering. However, not only does she dance, but she’s also a talented writer who will pack you into her suitcase so you can almost feel, smell and taste her experiences.

By the end, she’s toughened up and attempting to be confrontational. Difficult and unreasonable conditions would be putting it mildly, and after turning pages quickly, it seems Michele feels defeated. Based on her visit to the bank, perhaps she’s even going ‘mad’.
On a positive note, read this book when you think your life is going badly. Read this, and you’ll be grateful for everything that’s going right! The weather? The rats? The agent who doesn’t want to pay? The weird food? The drunken gropers? The gross hotel? Michele has painted a complete picture, allowing us to be voyeurs of unfortunate events, making this memoir incredibly entertaining. The glimpses of a life I’d never live, and wouldn’t know anything about, made me feel like I was peeking into Michele’s diary where something strange might happen at any time!

 Misericorde

Cynthia A. Morgan

The year is 2446 and it’s after the Great Cataclysm. “So much of what was beautiful, colorful and diverse was gone.” But the people that remained were still filled with hate, suspicion and fear. Enter the Angel of Mercy who needs to find at least one merciful human. Sadly, even though he has a miraculous sword that guards him, he’s captured and tortured for a year, by a medical officer named Phillippe. The archangel’s screams can be heard far beyond the tower, across the military bastion, even keeping a young scullery maid awake during the night.

This well-written novel will pull you into a fairy-tale like setting where the plot goes deeper than simply the good versus the bad. In fact, the stakes are higher now, and hell is filling the shadows with pure evil. Will Tzadkiel the archangel, find what he’s looking for? Can he escape the wrath of the guards and the commanding officer, Levesque? Is there a shred of mercy left anywhere? Read Misericorde and find out.

 

Twisted Tales from the Universe

Mari Collier

By the time I was old enough to watch television, the Twilight Zone shows were in reruns. Rod Serling wrote and produced most of the episodes, which he introduced himself. After the famous music and his introduction, I was mesmerized. The shows were either science fiction, horror or a blend of comedy and superstition. I also watched the Outer Limits, but nothing has ever compared to the Twilight Zone. Flash forward fifty years and there’s this incredible writer called Mari Collier. I’ve read other story collections by Collier, but this book pulled my attention in a bit deeper than the others. Man, oh man, if you liked The Twilight Zone, you’ll be hooked!

There’s a fascinating story about a shift in time that rearranges the mountains around Banning, California. In fact, Banning disappears completely. Truth be told, if you’ve ever been to Banning, you’d probably agree it wouldn’t be a big loss. Don’t worry, Collier laid out a hopeful solution, and kept me wondering whether things would go back to normal.

There’s a story titled One Flesh, about finding the perfect specimen of male, where the main character says, “I tingled in places I didn’t know I had.” A visit from an incompetent tooth fairy, a bizarre Halloween fight from 1952 that takes place in Iowa, a thirsty man trying some moral fruit, a story about Will who accidentally makes a mess of things during the depression, and more.
Will Gavin meet his quota in spite of the Red Dragons? Will Amelia return from the past? Will Flame Mouth get his Revenge? How about sweet, unassuming Auntie May?

If you are looking for far out entertainment—you found it. Best of all, each short story only takes a few minutes to read, so why not order a copy today?

 

  Skin Tight

Carl Haaisen

 

Right now, there’s a lot going on in the world. In fact, the craziness in a Hiaasen novel isn’t limited to Florida anymore. Which is exactly why I figured, this author, would come through with politically incorrect crude humor and some laughs. Meh. It had to be me, after all, Hiaasen is hilarious. I’ve read other Hiaasen books and laughed my head off. This one however--took me a long time to get through for some reason—and, in spite of the complex plot, too many characters and heaps of blood, I found it entertaining, but not funny.

Everyone loves the mysterious protagonist, Mick Stranahan, except the people who want him dead. Personally, I was so frustrated, I could have left him sunbathing on his stilt house forever. But this book is about Dr. Rudy Graveline anyway. Graveline made a mistake that will haunt him forever and covering it up with payoffs, bribes, mobsters, crooked lawyers, politicians and beautiful women, won’t make his problem go away. In fact, after he meets Chemo, and Reynaldo Flemm, things seem to head downhill, fast.

And where’s Mick when you need him? Like the invisible man, he’s there, but he’s not. It’s like he’s outsmarting the evil people in the book while outsmarting the reader too? Okay, so he’s got connections, friends and he’s got bullets--but wait--come back. Hello? Clever. I’m left hanging, and like Christina, I’m searching for a map to the next Hiaasen book about Mick Stranahan.

  The Deal-A New Beginning

Arch Font

Amazing but familiar characters! I’ve read many other wonderful novels by this talented author, and this book is unique to all the others. Font nails some of those fascinating personalities you only hear about in legends about RV lots. The salesmen, the managers, the receptionist and of course the unsuspecting customers, all seem to have some valid complaints. Buddy made me laugh-- I felt sorry for Chet-- thought Mindy and Katie were awesome--kind of wished Billy would return after doing his taxes--thought Max is perfect--and Lauren, I felt, was exactly the strong and beautiful woman he needed. Of course, all the customer characters are hilarious! Especially the stinky ones who make brownies. The book reads well. I had to keep reading to find out what happens to Alec and his dad. There are several touching moments, for example, when Max recites the serenity prayer. Very enjoyable plot with some captivating surprises. I guess unique is an understatement! Escape to the RV mall and have fun reading The Deal. I recommend it!

 

Have any recommendations? 

How about a book that made you laugh?

 Are you going to read any of my recommendations?

Love is the Cherry on Top!

 

Mainly due to sensitive teeth, I never crave ice cream. I know, weird, huh? There’s also some science backed medical issues about—well—forget it. That’s not the point. Truth is, I try avoiding the delicious treat, but find myself buying cartons of various flavors to please my sweetheart, who usually ends up eating it alone.  To which sceptics might say, sure, ‘she likes it too’. Well, I’m not made of stone. Plus, there’s some delicious, creamy options available that are softer than the icy stuff I remember from childhood.

Anyway, last night we made homemade banana splits with coffee-almond-fudge ice-cream and fudge brownie ice-cream, whipped cream, walnuts, and even a dash of caramel sauce.

Before I took the first bite, I noticed something was missing. The cherry!

We had a bowl of naturally sweet, cherries on the countertop and I grabbed one to decorate my dessert. There, among the fudge swirled creation, spoke the intangible analogy of a charmed life. The fruity banana on the bottom, the flavorful, the nutty and the sweet. And that cherry. Not a maraschino cherry, soaked in chemicals and food coloring, but a fresh, heart-colored delight sitting on top of a mountain of happiness. A sin about to be devoured.

I looked up at my husband gleefully enjoying his snack, and a powerful feeling of love came over me.  We were sharing a memorable moment like two partners in crime. Both aware of temporarily deviating into the dark side of normalcy, but doing it together, like Adam and Eve or Bonnie and Clyde.  I grinned, grabbed my spoon, and ne’er a pain from any tooth bothered me during this feast. Two seniors, now wild children, running on the freshly mowed grass and giggling with abandon.

For those few minutes, it felt good to be a rebel. (Come on, even doctors don’t know everything!)

                                                                                               

After all, isn’t love the gift that makes life

 prettier and sweeter—like a cherry on top—perfect?

Heart Shield

 For everyone returning to school, or work,
 after the pandemic:

 Listen to Your Heart

Sometimes our hearts have extra beats.

Rhythmic ones,

making us do things

we didn’t think we could do.

These beats encourage tenderness

to sprout into confidence,

with a whisper of boldness,

a murmur of sass.

 

A wilting flower,

now top of the class.

Instead of dregs,

the last in line waits for a fresh,

warm tray of refills.

A leader in a world of followers.

Blossom among weeds,

poised colorfully,

above spikey,

painful foxtails.

 

Those tapping extra beats,

thump loudly when facing the enemy.

Where evil lurks,

focus on the sound

emanating

from the heart.

Choose a course,

where distant drums approach;

the aegis,

the backup,

the cavalry

on the path,

to success.