My Good Deed for the Day

While taking my morning walk, I saw a large granite stone in the yard beside the sidewalk. Obviously, it belonged in the median with similar stones surrounding the crape myrtle trees.

The stone would look nice next to the small pile of stones near my front doorstep, but I knew it needed to be returned to the median. After watching for oncoming traffic, I took the stone back to join the others beside the crape myrtle tree and returned to continue my walk. Then I saw another. Again, I picked the stone up, watched for traffic, and returned it to the median.  How they landed many yards away across the street was a mystery.  Kids probably.

After my walk, I returned to work on my next novel, Holiday with a Royal, the sequel to Royal Wedding Scoop, which was just released.  Getting  Holiday with a Royal just right has been difficult, but I’m looking forward to seeing the cover on Amazon.

Royal Wedding Scoop to be released soon

I finally got my novel, Royal Wedding Scoop, revised and formatted for Kindle. It is  available for pre-order from Amazon. Once a Kindle World novel, titled Royal Wedding Cake, the novel has been revised and the characters moved to Cordillera, a fictitious kingdom in the mountains between France and Spain. Now a sequel  to Pretend Princess. Royal Wedding Scoop is the story of Armando, nephew to Cordillera King, Fernando Santiago. Armando meets an American reporter he wants to charm. However, he must put that aside to deal with a bomb and rescue Princess Tricia’s two kidnapped sisters.

Royal Wedding Scoop will be released on September 28, 2019.  Watch for Pretend Princess to be offered at a discount.

Enter contest to win a Paperwhite Kindle and other prizes

Hello Awesome Readers,

The Night Owl Romance Cupcakes & Books online reader scavenger hunt event is here! Enter between Aug 8^th and the 22^nd.

$700+ in Prizes & Over 100 Winners

Ready to Win? I’ve teamed up with Night Owl Romance and other authors to bring you the chance to win a Waterproof Kindle Paperwhite (USA ONLY) & Amazon Cards (Open to the World). I love my Paperwhite because I can read it in the dark without bothering my sleeping husband.

During this event I’m going to help you find some great new books. Make sure to check out my novel Pretend Princess at Amazon along the way. (Hint – read the description so you can find the missing word in my blurb.)

 

 

 

 

Enter the giveaway at:

https://www.nightowlreviews.com/v5/Blog/Articles/Cupcakes-Books-2019-by-Night-Owl-Romance

I wish you much luck in winning.

Carolyn Rae

It’s not just a gun

We all use the word gun, whether it is a rifle, a shotgun, a revolver, or a handgun. I got to see some up close and personal at the Hurst Police Station by participating in Firearms 101 as part of the DFW Writer’s Conference. I saw videos on how different guns work and learned some guns have two safety devices that must be released before you can shoot. A very old gun may not have a safety

Outlawing AK47s would be hard to enforce, because there are more than several thousand in the U.S. They are preferred because they keep shooting as long as a finger is on the trigger, although the force produced tends to raise the barrel to shoot higher. Those guns don’t jam and seldom malfunction. When the magazine is empty, a ping sounds to tell the shooter to put in a new magazine. Double action guns are hard to hold steady and often jam.

For safety, always assume a gun is loaded. Don’t point a gun at anything you don’t want destroyed. Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to shoot. Be aware of what is behind or close to the target that you might hit.

Sergeant Adam Hooton advised writers not to have heroes shoot out tires to stop a bad guy. It is hard to hit a moving target, and even if you do, the tire won’t deflate immediately. Besides, the driver can still operate the car on the rim. Car doors don’t stop bullets. Heroes should get behind cover to shoot and not try to shoot while they are moving because it is hard to be accurate.

If you write about a bad guy using a silencer or a suppressor as it is correctly termed, there is still a sound, though not near as loud, and there will be some muzzle flash.

I got to hold a Glock 19. It shoots a 9 mm bullet. I found it heavy to hold. Sergeant Hooton advised holding it with two hands, with the second hand cupping it.  I picked up the assault rifle, an AR 15, which was longer and even heavier. To hold it steady, you should jam it into the space between your shoulder bone and your clavicle.  The first picture shows Sergeant Adam Hooton with an AR 15.  The second picture includes the Glock 19, a revolver, and a semi-automatic.

Pretend Princess to be re-released as Book One of Cordillera Royals

In adding new material to Pretend Princess, I found out interesting things about Morocco. It is illegal to carry an Arabic Bible or give out Christian literature. Women do not shake hands and must dress by covering arms, legs, and chest to avoid being considered “available.” Below is the new cover for Pretend Princess to be re-released in July as the first book in my new series, Cordillera Royals.

What to Avoid for Living Happily Ever After (which all couples finally do in my novels)

During a Bible Study Session I attended, the subject of divorce came up. One member volunteered to check statistics on the reasons couples divorce.  This is what she found:

Today’s Reasons for Divorce

• 57%       Too much conflict and arguing
• 41% Getting married too young
• 31% Financial problems
• 36% Substance abuse
• 25% Domestic violence
• 12% Health problems
• 13% Lack of support from family
• 13% Little or no premarital education and religious differences

In a class on marriage I taught when I worked in a federal prison, I came up with ten tips for couples to handle disagreements. At the end of class, I presented each resident with a wooden plaque with these tips. I have also made decoupage plaques with these rules for wedding presents.

Couples Rules for Fighting Fair

1. Decide what you are fighting about.
2. Stay on the subject.
3. Don’t bring up mistakes made a long time ago.
4. Tell it like it is, and don’t pass the buck.
5. Tell how you honestly feel about things.
6. Get involved in the discussion. Listen to each other.
7. Don’t run the other down or criticize his or her ability to do his or her job.
8. Don’t call each other nasty names.
9. Don’t hit each other.
10. Don’t hit below the belt by criticizing the other’s sensitive spots.
11. Think of different ways to solve the problem that can satisfy both of you.
12. Say you’re sorry and make up.

 

 

A Busy Colorful Weekend

Mother’s Day Weekend kept me busy. On Friday I helped give out food at my church, which hosted the Tarrant County Food Bank Mobile Pantry. I gave out pistachio nuts, walnuts, and rice, which I haven’t cooked lately, because I’m trying to live on a low-carb diet. However, I have a good recipe which has only a small amount of potato in one serving. The recipe also includes broccoli, cauliflower, and carrots. See below for Oven Roasted Veggies.

Then I took a walk and saw what might have been a dragonfly during a metamorphose cycle. If anyone knows what I really saw, I’d like to know about it.

 

 

Sunday I was taken by my daughters to dinner at Asian King Buffet and then to a Lanterns in the Garden Tour in the Fort Worth Botanical Gardens. This set of eighteen exhibits was developed to show a sample of Chinese Garden Festivals, which have been held for thousands of years. The illuminated figures represented animals and flowers as big or bigger than  life size, including Panda Bears, Mustangs, Alligators, Fish, Sunflowers, and fanciful flower shapes.

 

 

 

Oven Roasted Veggies (Use smaller amounts of crumbs and margarine if only using                                                                       broccoli and cauliflower)

3 cups cauliflower                                                                                                                                    3 cups broccoli                                                                                                                                         2 -8 Tbs. melted margarine                                                                                                              1/3- 1/2 cup seasoned bread crumbs (I use my chicken crumb mix – 1/3 cup crumbs, 3T                        parmesan cheese, 1 tsp. Lowry’s seasoned salt, and ½ tsp. pepper)                          1 cup baby carrots, cut in half                                                                                                              4 -5 small red potatoes, cut in quarters                                                                                             2 tsp. marjoram                                                                                                                                      2 tsp. rosemary                                                                                                                                          1 ½ tsp. thyme                                                                                                                                       4-6 Tbs. olive oil

Directions

Melt the oleo and pour over veggies. Stir in crumbs. Roast at 450 degrees 15-20 minutes. If using carrots and potatoes, cook 30-35 minutes or until veggies are fork-tender. Pour olive oil in large bowl. Add herbs, then pour in veggies. Stir well and serve.  8-12 servings. Can reheat once in microwave. If you leave out carrots and potatoes, use half of the herbs and olive oil.

Nutrients         Whole recipe               Broccoli and Cauliflower only

Calories           251                               64                                                                                            Fat                   13 (if using 8 T oleo)   5                                                                          Cholesterol      13                                13                                                                        Carbohydrates 23                                4                                                                                      Sodium            160                             64