Visiting over Coffee

 

Can you meet me for coffee today? A couple of my friends and I enjoy getting together for “coffee” on occasion. Except, none of us drink coffee. That’s okay though, our favorite coffee shop makes marvelous drink, Italian Soda. I have no idea what’s in it, it is topped with whipped cream, I just know it’s good, and full of calories. But that’s okay, it’s also a cold drink, which is fine for summer, but not for winter. In the winter, I have tea. They have a wonderful selection.

Of course, we generally have a biscotti while we’re there. Would you like one?

When you and I have coffee, the first thing I will do is breathe deep and inhale the intoxicating aroma of your coffee. I may not drink it but I love the smell. Go figure.

What can I tell you? I’m not planning any travels in the near future. Although I would love to hear about your trips, either those planned, or your recent experience. Laurel over at Alphabet Soup, who gave me the idea for this little coffee meet is planning a trip to Italy. It will be so fun to hear about it when she returns.

I take it back. I have traveled recently. The drive was only forty-five minutes, but we traveled back in time to see the dinosaurs.

We, are me and my cousins Jared and Teresa. Jared is my second cousin,(I think) and his mother Teresa, is my cousin by marriage and my friend by choice.

Jared has special needs and we had a wonderful time “visiting” with the dinosaurs. He got to pet a baby dinosaur and bought a dinosaur shirt.

 My favorite picture of the day is one I don’t have a copy of. It is a picture of Jared sitting on a dinosaur, yes it is photo shopped. The best part though, they also took out his wheelchair. Jared has often made comments about something he’d do, or would like to do if he could. However, it’s something well out of his reach. To have a picture of him “doing” something he enjoys with no wheelchair in sight is fantastic to me.

After visiting the dinosaurs we went to one of the three Italian restaurants in Krebs, a nearby town. Krebs is known, at least in Oklahoma, as Little Italy. Anyone who visits wants to eat at one of those three places. I think the food is more Italian/American than authentic Italian, but it’s still unique and tasty.

Thanks to Laurel Regan at Alphabet Soup, for having coffee with her readers this morning and giving me this idea. This post is part of the Ultimate Blog Challenge.

What would you tell me if we had coffee?

What is your favorite hot beverage?

Have you traveled recently?

Please let me know in the comments. I love visiting with you.

Not Really Empty

It’s Friday. That means time for Five Minute Friday where I write for five minutes, unedited (oh scary) and link up with The Gypsy Mama.

1. Write for 5 minutes flat – no editing, no over thinking, no backtracking
2. Link back here and invite others to join in.
3. Please visit the person who linked up before you & encourage them in their comments.

Empty…

9:39

It sits empty, a testament to another time. Falling down and in, this house that lives down the road from me. Outside, the roof is caving, the walls are leaning, inside, the ceiling is drooping, and the floors are more holes than boards. It looks empty, no life left.

Looks can be deceiving though. On the door jam is still the faint line marks where someone measured a child’s growth. Palling from the walls, but still hanging on, is wallpaper, carefully selected to add joy and beauty to the home.

The furniture is gone, the people have left, all that remains is the skeleton, the shell of what once was.

Some days I feel like that house. Empty and depleted, noting left. But then the sun comes up, a note comes in the mail from a friend, or a child calls and instantly I’m filled again. I am reminded, I’m never alone, never completely empty. God sees to that.

End. 9:44 Whoo-hoo, I did it. You can read others take on the word EMPTY at The Gypsy Mama, come and join us, or just offer your support by reading (and commenting on) some of our ideas

Three Tips for Improved Blogs

In a never-ending search for ways to be more active online I’m devoting March to my blog. Each Monday I’ll look at suggestions and ways improving our blogs to help strengthen my writing platform. After all, that’s supposed to be the idea, have a good solid platform and people will find the books. Uh-huh. We’ll see. Last month I worked on my Twitter account. This month it’s blogging.

The goals are to blog consistently, and increase my readership. I’ll let you know at the end of the month how well it worked.

Today, I have 3 suggestions for a good blog.

1. Find an area and stick with it. Yeeeah, this is a case of do as I suggest and not as I do. I can’t seem to stay in one area with my blog.

•  I’m a writer, so I blog about writing, but I don’t feel experienced enough to only  blog about writing.
• I’m a quilter, remember. my book is a collection of quilt stories. Again, not an expert quilter, and don’t want to just blog about quilting.
• Then there’s my faith, inspirational, uplifting comments and ideas I want to share.

However, experts on blogging suggest we bloggers find and stick with one market.  While I haven’t been able to follow that advice, I do follow bloggers in each of those categories that do stick to one subject.

Writing bloggers like Duolit , who have a blog  for independent published authors, but I find it helpful. When I want to learn about book marketing, I check out their blog.

Quilting bloggers like, Kim at Kim’s Crafty Apple,  I know when I go to her blog there will be information on quilting in some form. Sure I learn a little about her life, but mostly I learn about quilting.

Inspirational bloggers like, Karen Jordan at Telling the Stories that Matter the Most. I know if I’m hurting, or want to be uplifted Karen is sure to have a story that will help.

This is why ‘experts’ encourage us to find an area and stick with it when we blog. Although, that is good advice, I’ve never been known to do what was best. Maybe it’s the latent rebel in me.

I’m not alone, there are other bloggers who cover a variety of subject. Bloggers like Amy Shojai’s Blog, Bling, Bitches, & Blood. Or Hilary at The Smitten Image, then there’s Carol at Ruminations of a Red Dirt Hussy.

2.  Have a schedule. Even if your blog, like mine, zigzags all over the place, have a posting schedule. This will allow your readers to have an idea of when you will post what.I try to do that:

• Monday is for writers, currently it’s marketing, but that could change.
• Wednesday is God’s word, that’s still a work in progress. I started one way which didn’t work, so am looking for what will work for me.
• Friday is Five Minute Friday, where I write for five minutes, no editing, no second guessing, and link up with others at The Gypsy Mama.
• Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays are supposed to be for quilting, again, a work in progress.
• Sundays are silent, I post pictures.

3.  Be consistent. Right. Another case of do as I suggest and not as I do. Once we have a schedule, we need to stick with it. Again, it makes it easier for our readers. Also, having a consistent time to post helps them. Some like to post in the late evening, others prefer posting in the early morning, or maybe the afternoon, depending on their real life schedule. So far, my posting time has been horribly erratic.

Now you know what I’m not doing, that I should be doing. How about you? Do you follow any of these rules, or do you break them? Why? Do you have other “rules” you follow that helps keep your blog active? Please share with us.

 

 

A Week in Photos

Sunday. It's still winter, so am keeping a few "winter" decorations out

Mon. Max the guard dog on duty. 🙂

Tue. 1/10 Sign of the Gerty Store

Another view of the Gerty Store sign. She makes awesome fried pies!

This is what happens when you get in a hurry to finish the blocks. Thur. 1/12

At the OKC Winter Show 1/13

Wall hanging of mine and David's hands. 1/14

Full Life – Five Minute Friday

Last Saturday I found Gypsy Momma and her weekly word prompt. This week I’m doing better, actually noticed her blog post today, which is good since it’s called Five Minute Friday.

Today’s word is Full.

Wow, there are so many ways to go with that. I think I’ll go with full life. Despite the minus, and the people missing, life is still full.

Full of family,  three children and their spouses. I have a friend who calls in-loves rather than in-laws. I like that and often use the term. Of course there are the six grandchildren, wonderful gifts from my children.

The loving circle then spreads out to include, a sister and niece who call just to say hi. A brother who still keeps in  touch. A brother-in-law who checks on me through my son. Numerous nieces and nephews who add joy to my life just by being in it, whether we are in contact or not.

As we continue on to the people who fill my life there are the friends, both those close geographically, and distant. Friends I know in real life and friends I’ve only met online. They all add joy, comfort, and even security to my life.

Thanks to everyone who helps fill my life with caring and understanding. There is so much more filling my life, but this is limited to five minutes, and the people who are my most important ‘life fillers.”

So what about you? Is your life full? What helps fill it? What do you need to fill it? Have a great weekend. Don’t forget you can visit gypsy momma to see what others have to say about “full.”