WRITE...EDIT...PUBLISH... THE W.E.P. BLOG HOP IS NOW RESURECTED!

Hi, All!

Hope everyone enjoyed one of the first weekends of summer! I did. We actually had a lovely weekend weather wise. Of course it didn't last. Once again the rain returned....

Today I have the pleasure of announcing that the WRITE... EDIT... PUBLISH Bloghop is now returning. YAY!

For all of you who love Flash Fiction, photography, art work, poetry, non-fiction, or play scripts created to a specific word count to keep is fast and FUN!

Open to ALL Genres: MG, YA, ROMANCE, and ADULT.

So why not get those creative juices flowing now that summer is here and we are all in happier spirits. LET'S CREAT TOGETHER, by starting with a fun and exciting HOP...

Your hosts are my close blogger buddies, DENISE COVEY and YOLANDA RENEE! I know many of you know these amazing ladies, so you know you are in for a fun and quality HOP! I"m certainly looking forward to the first Prompt!

Why not drop by Denise's blog... here is the LINK to her intro... Happy HOPPING everyone. 

I hope all of you have a WONDERFUL Monday and be sure to drop by here on Wednesday for yet another IWSG POST....

SUMMER SIGHTINGS....

Hi, All,

First I'd like to thank all of you for all the amazing blog love I have received over the past few months concerning my housing issues. Although nothing has been resolved, I plan on enjoying the summer and "DEALING WITH LIFE" in September. It's all about reconnecting with my blogger friends and the writing community.

And now for the sightings.... are you intrigued? I hope so!

Last week, I met 80's guru, and chic lit author, Nicki Elson for coffee in the Printer's Row section of Chicago. such a fascinating neighborhood. Imagine strolling the streets where MILLIONS of books had been published and printed! On historic Dearborn st, there's still a charming bookstore. Thankfully this gem is still in business. With the whirlwind of Amazon books, so many of our historic and treasured book stores are fading from cityscapes all over the country.

After a two hour chat at the local Starbucks, Nicki and I strolled north to the riverfront to meet fellow author Jennifer Lane... She and Nicki had planned to meet for dinner. I stayed for a quick iced tea and left the ladies to catch up on their chosen genre...

This Saturday, June 20th, from 12:00-3:00, at the Barnes and Noble, at 9891 Waterstone Blvd. in Cincinnati, OH., our blogger pal, Tara Tyler is having a book signing! I'm so excited for her! So I decided to leave Chicago, which just happens to be over populated with breeding dementors (Harry Potter fans will know what these creatures are). Yes, although the city is celebrating the Stanley Cup, fog has socked in all over the city and the cool, wet weather is sucking all the life out of this blogger for sure. A road trip to escape is much needed. SO, why not visit a blogger pal. Right?

I'll also be meeting another close blogger pal, and amazing author, Julie Flanders. She also lives in the Cincinnati area. So if any of you would like to join us at Barnes and Noble and grab one of Tara's incredible stories, a coffee, tea, or iced frappaccino at Starbucks, I'd LOVE to see you!

Later in July, this blogger is attending the SCBWI Summer conference in LA!!!!!! I can't begin to tell you how excited I am to be going. It's something I had wanted to do for many years. I have been fortunate enough to attend the Winter conference a few times in NYC, and had the most memorable experiences. But now, in LA, it will be UBER AMAZING. There, I will be spending the event with super fun, vivacious red head, MORGAN SHAMY, who's infectious personality lights up the blogosphere! How cool with this be?!!!! BEYOND COOL! Not only to learn so much at the conference, but to also connect with a close blogger friends. It will be MAGICAL. If any of you are going PLEASE let me know! I'd love to meet you there!

I will be posting pics from Saturday and of course the conference. Summer season is about to begin and it can't come soon enough for me!

Do any of you have some amazing plans to meet our fellow blogger buddies this Summer? Why not host a small gathering in your neighborhood. It's worth the effort.

Well, that's all the sightings for now. I hope you all have a WONDERFUL weekend full of exciting surprises!

LIFE VS ANXIETY...WINNER TAKE ALL...

Hi, Everyone,

I hope all of you are well and life is treating you with the love and respect you deserve. With all the troubles in our lives and in the world, we need to hold onto the simple pleasures in our lives: family, friends, and what makes us truly happy.

My last month's post featured the trials and tribulations of trying to buy my home in Tampa, Florida. I had left Chicago a mere two weeks ago ready to start the next journey of my life. Heart pounding and my excitement building, I was ready for a new phase...a new challenge. 

Since then, much has happened and I have learned how cruel and unfeeling some people can be. I am not naive to human behavior and I have experienced a great many things in my life. But nothing affects me more than senseless cruelty by the hands of another human being.

I'm sure many of you have experienced this first hand and my heart goes out to you. I suppose this is, yet again, another obstacle we as humans must face in life's journey.

As you recall, I had lost my mortgage, but the owners agreed to a lease the property to me with the option to buy within a year. All seemed well. The realtors were hashing out all the details, and I drove down to Fort Lauderdale to collect all my things that had been in storage there for the last eleven years. The movers loaded up the seventeen foot Uhaul truck, and I was on my 280 mile drive to Tampa. As I crossed Alligator alley in the torrential rain, my phone rang. Glancing at the name, I had to answer...it was my realtor. The deal was off. Shocked, I pulled the truck over to the side. Anger flooded each and every nerve of my body. "WHAT!" I had the Tampa movers scheduled to unload the truck in less than twelve hours. "How could the sellers do this?" They could, and they did. They had never signed the revised contract. 

So there I sat. Pouring rain assaulting every inch of the truck. I could barely hear my own heart beating. Think and pull yourself together... was what I kept telling myself. SO... I did. I picked up my cell and called the Uhaul center where I had planned to return the truck. An "Earthly Angel" answered and she was able to assist me in acquiring the space I needed to store my life...again. 

Three hours later I had arrived. I was able to leave the truck there overnight. A friend picked me up and was kind enough to take me to my B&B.

It's amazing how much one can endure. The human spirit can shed intense anxiety when needed to focus on the task at hand, but the aftermath is another story. Just like surviving an earthquake, but what of the aftershocks? 

I had planned a six-eight week stay, begin the remodeling of my new place, and toget the wheels in motion for my future in a new city. I had it all set up beautifully... but it took only one cruel person to knock over the first domino and send the rest of the delicate wall crashing all around me.

It took me about a week to tie up all the lose ends in Tampa before returning back to Chicago. Not only was this an emotional hit, but it was also a financial one. But throughout this whole ordeal, amazingly I remained calm or was I just numb? I'm still not sure. But I believe deep down all of this happened for a reason. As all things do.

During my two day drive back to Chicago, I had many hours to think. My earlier plans to move to NYC had fallen through when the seller of a condo I was about to buy broke our contract and accepted a higher bid. Then, I had thought that perhaps that was for a reason and I should move south. Now this... Funny how life is. Another condo very similar to the one I had lost in NY has come on the market. It is larger, on a higher floor, and with a terrace! So maybe... It's an office like the former and I can create a fantastic 2 bedroom 1.5 bath in this space. It could be amazing...

Now the anxiety has hit... Do I return back home to NYC or move to South Tampa? NY will always be home to me, but it is cold, and after ELEVEN winters in Chicago, I'm not sure I want to endure another. (Chicago is still in the 40's in JUNE! Only a high of 55 today) I have grown to really hate the cold.

Tampa has it's good points, but I have such a bad taste from what had happened. It had taken me six months to find the condo I had wanted to buy and to start all over again.... it's difficult. Tampa is very pricey in the neighborhood I wish to live in... properties are scarce and what is for sale is way out of my price range. 

Time is whirling by at a fast pace. 2015 is six months gone. I had so many goals for this year: a new home, a contract for my second novel. Neither has happened. Yet, they almost did. Still waiting on the agent who has expressed such interest in my story... and yet, nothing. So here I wait. Like so many of you...

Today was a bright an sunny day. Cool, but lovely. I worked with a client who has hired me for years to update her space. She acquired two furry friends and needed to "kitty-proof" the house. Watching them scamper and play certainly put a smile on my face. Something so sweet and simple washed away much of my tension. I may not know where I'll end up, but I am glad to know that I can still appreciate the simple things in life. The purr of a kitten, the sun streaming through an azure sky, spring flowers bursting with color, the wafting scent of lilac, and the hug of a friend...

I wanted to share this with you because we all experience very traumatic things in our lives, but always remember to keep breathing and keep you eyes open wide. You don't want to miss out on the simple, yet beautiful things, in life...

Thank you Alex J. Cavanaugh for giving us all the opportunity to share the ups and downs of our lives. Please visit the other writers posting for the IWSG today. You never know who you may help or how someone may help you...

Have a wonderful day everyone!