Express Yourself - EYM Birthday Week - Rewind

Express Yourself is a weekly Meme hosted by my friend Jackie and myself. We do this every week to learn more about our fellow bloggers and so far we have met some very talented and wonderful people!

This week marks the One Year anniversary of Express Yourself Meme!! Happy Birthday EYM!

Jackie & I would like to know; What has been your favorite question during the first year of EYM?


Oh, this is hard for me. So many questions have come and gone. And so many badges and banners have blessed this screen. Plus, I have slept a few nights here and there since this whole thing started.

I think some of my favorites were from last October...

• List 5 movies/books which cause the hair on your nexk to stand up.
• List 5 favorite monsters throughtout history (fictional or non-fictional).

And one from last November...

• List 5 perfect imperfections about yourself; things which bug others but are a part of what makes you - you.

If you would like, you may go ahead and revisit these in the comments below. Movies, monsters, imperfections... OH MY!

*Starting tomorrow, and every day following until the 31st, I will be highlighting ONE "thing" I love about the month October since it's my favorite month and all. I'm calling it "Thirty-One Loves of October". You are more than welcome to join. Just spotlight something each day that reminds you of October and makes you love it even more!

Cheers!!

Celebrating My Week is Almost Over

Ahhh, it's Friday! I can't believe it's here already! Woot!  VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week... hmmm I really don't have anything way over the top to celebrate. Let see what I can fish out of my memeory banks... 

• Well Jackie and I always seem to wait until the last week of each month to come up with our Express Yourself Meme list for the following month. I think we have silently agreed that we both work better under pressure. Maybe? *shrugs* But nonetheless the October EYM list is ready and is as follows...
  

• Another stressed out week this time for heath issues dealing with my husband. We will hopefully find out answers today. He already has Crohn's which might have contributed to this little stint. It's just one of those things.
• A friend at work let me borrow his Star Trek movie so I watched it over the weekend. I couldn't sleep one night so it was like 2:30am when I started watching it. Scottie is definitely one of my favorites! Right off the bat I knew what was going to be used to save someones life. It was predictable but I still teared up. I'm such a geek. And then in return I let him borrow my World War Z.
• My 13 yr old wanted to watch WWZ and I let her, it's not gory and I thought if she can handle The Walking Dead then she can most definitely handle WWZ. She literally sat on top of parts of my body - you know, "just in case". But she really loved it and even shouted at the screan a couple of times, "DON'T LEAVE THE CROWBAR YOU DOPE!" and even caught on to the little things that some adults didn't even get the first time around, "They just past him up. He must have something." I was rather surprised at how much she was calculating in her brain. Usually she is the child who says, "I don't get it," or, "I'm confused," but she's also the one who brings home straight A's. My 15 year old said he had too much homework and would watch it later.

Express Yourself - Author Luncheon

Express Yourself is a weekly Meme hosted by my friend Jackie and myself. We do this every week to learn more about our fellow bloggers and so far we have met some very talented and wonderful people!

This week Jackie and I are asking: What author(s) would you love to have lunch with?

I would LOVE to have a sit-down luncheon with Neal Shusterman. By the time I was done with him, he would hate any line ending with a question (?) mark and the sound of my voice. I find that man uber interesting.

Non-Fiction Series

Dark Fusion, Darkness Creeping, Skinjackers Trilogy, Star Shards, The X-Files Universe, Unwind Series

Novels

[The Shadow Club] (1988), Dissidents (1989), Speeding Bullet (1991), What Daddy Did (1991), The Eyes of Kid Midas (1992), The Aliens Approach (1996) [Easton Royce], Mutiny (1996) [Easton Royce], The Dark Side of Nowhere (1997), Downsiders (1999), The Shadow Club Rising (2003), Full Tilt (2003), The Schwa Was Here (2004), Antsy Does Time (2008), Bruiser (2010), Ship Out of Luck (2013), Tesla's Attic (with Eric Elfman) (2014)

Picture Books

Piggyback Ninja (1994)

Collections

Mindquakes: Stories to Shatter Your Brain (1996), Mindstorms: Stories to Blow Your Mind (1996), Windtwisters: Stories To Shred Your Head (1997), Mindbenders: Stories to Warp Your Brain (2000)

Games

How To Host A Murder, The Grapes of Frath (1997), Roman Ruins (1997), The Good, the Bad, and the Guilty (1998), Tragical Mystery Tour (1999), Saturday Night Cleaver (2000), Maiming of the Shrew (2001), An Affair to Dismember (2003), How to Host a Teen Mystery, Hot Times at Hollywood High (1997), Barbecue with the Vampire (1999), Roswell That Ends Well (2002)

Nonfiction

Guy Talk (1987), It's Ok to Say No to Cigarettes and Alcohol (1988), Neon Angel: The Cherie Currie Story (1989) with Cherie Currie, Kid Heroes: True Stories of Rescuers, Survivors, and Achievers (1991)

Poems

Shadows of Doubt (1993)

Essays

Afterword: Where They Came From (Mindquakes: Stories to Shatter Your Brain) (1996), Where They Came From (2000), Foreword (Darkness Creeping: Twenty Twisted Tales) (2007)

Another man I who would tickle my fancy to eat brunch with, Cormac McCarthy. He has some of the best novels and most of them have been turned into some of the best films.

Novels

The Orchard Keeper (1965) ISBN 0-679-72872-4

Outer Dark (1968) ISBN 0-679-72873-2

Child of God (1973) ISBN 0-679-72874-0

Suttree (1979) ISBN 0-679-73632-8

Blood Meridian or the Evening Redness in the West (1985) ISBN 0-679-72875-9

All the Pretty Horses (1992) ISBN 0-679-74439-8

The Crossing (1994) ISBN 0-679-76084-9

Cities of the Plain (1998) ISBN 0-679-74719-2

No Country for Old Men (2005) ISBN 0-375-70667-4

The Road (2006) ISBN 0-307-38789-5

The Passenger (forthcoming)

Short fictio

Wake for Susan (1959)

A Drowning Incident (1960)

Screenplays

The Gardener's Son (1976) ISBN 0-88001-481-4

The Counselor (2013)

Plays

The Stonemason (1995) ISBN 978-0-679-76280-5

The Sunset Limited (2006) ISBN 0-307-27836-0

Celebrate the Small Things - Bridges & Skies on Fire

Ahhh, it's Friday! I can't believe it's here already! Woot!  VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week... 

• I've had a busy couple of weeks. My Mon., Tues., Weds., the past two weeks have been grooling so I hope I have no more of those. And it's not like it's life and death things, it's just really dumb things that take my usual nights to a whole other place. Like my daughters' science partners don't help her with their toothpick bridge so I'm up late with her piecing the thing together and then I get up at 3am to finish it for her cause I feel bad. Stuff like that. I really hate school and I'm not even in it anymore. Or that the Jeep needed repairs so I had to drive all overs God's green Earth to deliver my husband to his desired places. Arg! (below are the pictures of my daughters finished toothpick bridge - she wanted do more but we needed more time)
  
  
   
• I am happy about this weekend though. My hubby isn't working OT and since it's a late Colts game on Sunday, I'm having a few family members over to make wreaths. And I'm hoping I get to watch the new Star Trek movie that a friend from work let me borrow.
• On Wednesday, as I was dropping my Jeep off to be repaired, I took this picture of the glorious sky here in Indiana that morning. There were all kinds of pictures floating all over FB and the local news but this was version.

  

  The sky was on fire in the East...

  
  
  
  
  

  

  ...and a double rainbow in the West. You can barely see the second rainbow just above the bright one.

Spooktoberfest and Zombies

Today I'm hoping to bring two of my favorite subjects together: Halloween, or blog-friendly, Spooktoberfest and Zombies.

Let's start with the one that involves less cardio, shall we.

With the oncoming of the spookiest holiday of the year, Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and myself are bringing sexy back – er – SPOOKTOBERFEST back this October. We had a great turnout last year and gave away some amazing prizes!

To find all of the gory details click here!

Now on to the more adrenaline related topic. Zombies  have been giving us humans a run for our money lately. And I mean that in the most punly way possible. The reanimated have made a comeback in the recent years and they seem to be going nowhere anytime soon. From comics, TV series and movies, to Zombie Walks and 5k's.

Let's talk about one of those 5k's in a little more detail. A summer ago I participated in Run For Your Lives zombie 5k which literally took my 5k experience to another level. Not only did I have to concentrate on my breathing and timing (cause I have asthma) but I also had to sprint in bursts and climb, crawl, jump, turn, scream, climb some more, be electrocuted, scream a couple of more times - you get my drift. Time flew and I had a blast while being chased by swarms of faux-brain-starved-undead.

Run For You Lives hosts all over the country and even in some other countries as well. I promise, they will be coming to a town near you! If you are interested visit their website here!

Plus zombies would be a great topic for Spooktoberfest! IMO anyways.

Have a great Thursday! And make sure you are keeping your cardio up. BTW, I bought World War Z (I watched it in the theaters) and I'm excited to have added to my zombie collection! Woot!

Express Yourself - Character Personality

Express Yourself is a weekly Meme hosted by my friend Jackie and myself. We do this every week to learn more about our fellow bloggers and so far we have met some very talented and wonderful people!

This week Jackie and I are asking: Name a movie characters' personality who is you to a tee?

Last week I did a Harry Potter personality questionaire so apparently I could portray Remus Lupin in the HP series. Except I would be the female version so call me Remy Lupin.

Questionaire here!

I have taken Twilight quizes in the past and they revealed that I'm close to Alice. Not surprised but I'm not into fashion and all that sparkles. lol I couldn't help it.

I don't know who I resemble really but I do usually root for the mean ass good girls. I love the goodie girls with a mean streak in them. You know, mouthy, attitude, maybe some tats and piercings, you can't tell if they have an ulterior motive or not. Maybe that's my inner muse. I don't know.

Celebrate the Small Things & Spooktoberfest

Calm down people, calm down! I know it's Friday and you are all excited to get out of here and on with your weekends but lets hear what everyone is excited about this week ok?!   VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week... 

• Found this fun Harry Potter questionaire here http://www.humanmetrics.com.cgi-win/jtypes2.asp#questionaire I ending up with Type INFJ which is Remus Lupin.
  

• My father-in-law is having his ceremony for his promotion to Chief (Air Force) on Sunday. That's exciting and very respectable! Salute!
• And last but definitely NOT least...
  

With the oncoming of the spookiest holiday of the year, Jackie @ Bouquet of Books and myself are bringing sexy back – er – SPOOKTOBERFEST back this October. We had a great turnout last year and gave away some amazing prizes!

2013 Requirements:

1. Follow us - Dani and Jax, if you don’t already. We love meeting new bloggers, and we do follow back.

2. Your Flash Fiction piece should be between 300 - 500 words. It can be scary, funny, action-packed, romantic, or whatever you choose. Just let your creativity flow!

3. You must choose 3 of the 6  words listed below to include in your flash fiction piece…

WRETCH (ED)

IMPEDING

ALIEN (S)

SKELETON (S)

POTION (S)

MASK (S)

 

4.  Highlight those 3 words in your story so we can find them.

5. Choose at least 1 of the 4 pictures below to BE THE SETTING for your flash fiction piece.

Forest/Woods (source)



Mine/Cave (source)



Stairs/Stairwell (courtesy of Jackie)



Road/Lane (courtesy of Jackie)



6. Post your piece any day from Friday Oct 25th thru Monday, Oct. 28th.

7. It’s a blog hop, so… hop around to other participating blogs and leave some awesome comments.

8. We'll announce the winners on Thurs Oct. 31, 2013 - Halloween! Jackie and I will each choose a winner. You read that right – two winners!
9. Have fun!!!

Side note - not required: If you have a twitter account and have the extra time - go ahead and send out a tweet letting us know you have posted your submission (this step is very helpful for us). Below is our @ accounts and the hashtag.

@JackieFel

@danibertrand

#Spooktoberfest

PRIZES: A grab bag (more like a box of stuff) and candy. The winners will get the biggest bags we can find of their favorite candy along with some spookified items.

Oh, and yes, this blogfest is international. So what are you ghouls waiting for? Sign up using the Linky Thing below and spread the word!

Express Yourself - Hobbies, Talents, Crafty

Express Yourself is a weekly Meme hosted by my friend Jackie and myself. We do this every week to learn more about our fellow bloggers and so far we have met some very talented and wonderful people!

This week Jackie and I are asking: What is something crafty / handy you do or wish you did?

I don't know if it's a popular thing but Jackie and I used to do monthly meetings with some of our family members under the unbrella company of Stampin' Up. It's a scrapbooking and crafting group. We had a blast making things like scrapbooking pages, picture frames, invites, keepsake box, etc. Our group has since disbanded but in a few weeks a couple of us are getting together to make wreaths and then next month we are all getting together to make holiday wreaths.

On a side note: I used to work with Jackie at her flower shop and made floral arrangements which I consider pretty crafty since I had never done it before and Jackie was the perfect teacher!

I also design all of my own tattoos. Jackie & I drew up our matching foot tats. (Saying in ribbon: Vous inspire' celui-ci (You inspire this one)) The ribbon and saying come from a book series... can you guess which one? I have a sketch book full of drawings and sketches of my brother and husband and family members, more tat ideas, sceneries, etc.

Let me brag about Jackie for a second since I know a few of her talents... she has an eye for the perfect floral arrangement. When it came to Stampin' Up she could throw colors together like nobody's business and it came out amazing. She is a wonderful author who can make you fall in love with her writing. She's a bowler and can bowl me under the rug any day. And if being a patient mamma and wife is a talent, she's got that in the bag! She's a pretty forgiving and amazing friend too.


What are you talents, hobbies, etc? Please share!

Have an awesome Monday!!

Celebrating the Small Things

Ahhh, it's Friday! I can't believe it's here already! Woot!  VikLit always puts on a great Friday celebration! 

This week... 

• I took some great pictures of the kids. I will buy the smallest package of school pictures so I have something but I will not pay the mega outragious prices for a large pkg when I can shot my own, create better pictures, and buy cheaper packages online. And most of the time I don't even like the ones the school takes. My kids hate them, their smiles are faked, their hair is out of control... it's stress free my way. Unless my teenage daughter is having a meltdown... then it's a pain in my bum! You can check my session with the kids here.
• I lost a few lbs last week and I can tell I've lost more inches... well, when I'm not bloated. Gawd, being a woman has its high points but it also has its lows. Like what's up with bloating?! I sit here thinking... What in the heck did I eat?! My face looks 5x fatter than this morning! Lawrd I need a better bra! It never ends! I am a very confident person but sometimes it would be nice to look in a mirror at noon and still look as good as I did when I left the house at 6:30am. I swear my mirror at home came from a carnival - it lies. UGH!
• Now that September is here, I'm getting SUPER EXCITED about Autumn!! October is my favorite month, during my favorite time of year, and hosts my favorite holiday! I have a ton of new Halloween decorating ideas I can't wait to start. Plus my little one has her birthday in Oct. and it takes every ounce of willpower not to decorate her birthday party with a Halloween theme.
• Next week keep a look out for the annual SPOOKTOBERFEST blogfest!!

IWSG and Express Yourself

It's Insecure Writers Support Group today! And it's turning 2 Years Old! Alex J. Cavanaugh and his co-hosts Chemist Ken, SL Hennessey, Michelle Wallace, and Joylene Nowell Butler.


My IWSG is gonna be pretty quick here... I only have a question really...

When writing I tend to use real people and their names in my WIP's to make it more personal. So I can connect with it more. I find it brings out more emotions within me. Then, when the first draft is done I go back and change my characters names to what I really want them to be.

Does anyone else do this or am I completely nuts?

Also, today I'm posting my Express Yourself Sept request for this week so I don't have to post tomorrow and Friday... that would make a post every day this week and I want to take tomorrow off.

Share some of your favorite photos. It can be of anything you want.

I usually take my own kids yearly photos and every year they get better and better. Here are some on my faves from over the weekend.






I love them all but I really love the one in the upper left corner.



She is the most difficult person to take pictures of so I'm pretty happy with the ones I shot.

These two are the best of friends! My favorite one in the serious portrait. He looks so intense.

She's a ham so these were fun to take. The older she gets the more animated she becomes.

Here are some oldies...


Top left: 2012 Halloween - it's hard to get him to wear a costume.
Top center: At my cousins wedding
Top right: old pic at the lake but I love it.
Center left: the last picture of my dad and brother together. He put his rope on at basic.
Center: My grandpa and me. I love old pics.
Center right: My mom and me. Love her shirt
Bottom row: Our wedding day. I love how adorable my kids looked!

Two pics I love from the web...

The power of unity

The power of books

 Have any pictures that grab you attention?! Seen any on the web that you absolutely love?! Care to share?!

Novel Films - All 3 Days, One Post

Madeleine over at Scribble and Edit is hosting the Novel Films II blogfest yesterday, today, and tomorrow. I usually don't blog on holidays so I'm posting all 3 days today. Hope you all enjoy my picks!

Day 1: Are there any novels you have seen as films / TV adaptations in which the novel left you cold?
Or a film that surprised you and promoted you to read the novel?

Harry Potter by JK Rowlings - I saw the first two movies which prompted me to start reading the series. The gave more details, however, I loved the movies more.

The Road by Cormac McCarthy - I read the book first and then watched the movie... the novel was so much more! I suggest if you have seen the movie and hated it... don't judge the book by the movie. The novel is WAY better!!

The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien - I read some of the novel when I was in high school but was never much of a reader then. Once I saw the movies, I finished the book. I love the movies!

The Host by Stephenie Meyer - The book was spectacular, way better then her Twilight Saga. But I equally loved the movie. I thought they complimented each other.


Day 2: Which novel that so far haven't yet been made into films /TV adaptations would you like to see and why?

The Chaos Walking by Patrick Ness - This series would make a wonderful trilogy is done by the proper director.

The Circle Trilogy by Nora Roberts - The vampire/sorcerer/sorceress/slayer series is one of my favorites and my first love of this fantasy genre. I would be thrilled to see this come alive on the big screen or even a TV series.

Most of Jonathon Maberry's novels - All thriller/horror novels. I know most people can't stand one more film about zombie apocalyptic reels but I think these would make the zombie lovers very happy.


Day 3: Have you read any novels where you have yet to see the films / TV adaptations? Or seen any films where you are keen to read the original novel?

The Caster Chronicles by Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl - This movie recieved such horrible reviews which is the reason why I haven't watched it yet. I don't want to ruin my vision of the series with a bad movie like Twilight. I'm guess my curiosity will get the best of me though.

The Mortal Instruments by Cassandra Clare - I REALLY want to watch this!

Devergent by Veronica Roth - Can't wait!!


Also, Express Yourself meme for September questions is as follows and updated in my tabs...

So that's my 3 days of NOVEL FILMS II blogfest! Have an awesome Tuesday!! Hope everyone had a great long weekend... that is if you had a long weekend.