“Battle Flag” by Lo Fidelity Allstars featuring Pigeonhed is the Song of the Day
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I first heard “Battle Flag” in the late 1990s as a club mix. It was originally written as an homage to Prince by Pigeonhed and remixed and recorded by Lo Fidelity Allstars. The beat and a few of the lyrics stuck with me. However, it was not until I heard it on the episode of “ER” where Dr. Carter (Noah Wylie) meets, and is stabbed by, a Schizophrenic patient that it grabbed me.
Then, I heard it on an episode of The Sopranos and was thrilled when they included on one of their show soundtracks. It has become one of my get-up-and-MOVE jams.
The song starts off with a bang and just keeps going. Here are the first few lines:
Your construction
Smells of corruption
I manipulate to recreate
This air to ground saga
Gotta launder my karma
Gotta launder my karma, indeed. Great advice for all of us. Wave your own battle flag!
Happy World Nutella Day – February 5, 2014
Nutella has always been a part of my food vocabulary. Growing up overseas, we were exposed to international foods from an early age and items that might have seemed “exotic” to some, were commonplace to us. Nutella, was one of those treats. My great-grandmother would spread it on toast, as a dessert with tea. Since it was a memory I associated with childhood, I always assumed it was tastier than it actually was. The same way camp cabins seemed so enormous, when we were younger, but grew smaller as we aged.
I was wrong. Nutella was not only as delicious I remembered, it was even better incorporated into “adult” desserts.
Imagine my surprise when I moved to the U.S. and there was NO NUTELLA, anywhere. Some Italian specialty markets carried Nutella, but it was expensive and would fly off the shelves as soon as they were stocked. In some cases, it was like watching a small version of Black Friday sales crowds, before the mayhem and murder.
Fortunately, American fans demanded that Nutella be available and we prevailed! Now, Nutella is available in our local grocery store and a few American food corporations have created their very own versions, of the luscious hazelnut spread. I wish them luck, but I am a loyal Nuella woman.
Eight years ago, blogger Sara Rosso created World Nutella Day to extol its wonders. Other food bloggers soon caught the bug and World Nutella Day became a grassroots success. Unfortunately, the “holiday” met with some early legal challenges from Ferrero, the Italian company that produced Nutella. Once they realized that World Nutella Day was not only a celebration of the product, but an opportunity to gain new fans, they relented and joined the fun. Today, Ms. Rosso and Michelle Fabio are the coordinators of the festivities, with the blessings of Ferrero.
If you have not tried Nutella, today is the perfect day for your first taste! To all the other Nutella fans out there, I high-five you with my spoon!
Hermione Without Ron? Say It Ain’t So, J.K.
In teaser quotes from an interiew with Emma Watson, guest editor at Wonderland Magazine, J.K. Rowling admits to having wanted Hermione Granger to end up with Harry Potter, not Ron Weasley. (The issue will be available on Thursday.)
WHAT?!
As I read each book and the characters grew older, I found the pairing of Hermione and Ron to be inspired. As the primary character, Harry, was the obvious (boring) choice as leading man. I will admit to having imagined the two of them ending up together, but as the story progressed, the more compelling relationship was between Hermione and Ron.
It was a classic “opposites attract” story, imbedded in the “friends-to-lovers” theme. Ron allowed Hermione to let her hair down, have fun and relax her natural intensity, while Hermione’s confidence in Ron empowered him to grow up, and into his own man. It also allowed a ginger to be the romantic hero. Genius!
I thank whatever literary gods and the Universe for ensuring that Ms. Rowling, not only kept Ron alive, but made him into an awkward, albeit truly lovable, romantic hero. It was one of many different plot twists that made this series on of my favorites.
How do you feel about these new revelations?
Breaking Up With Friends
The Drift: A Guide to Surviving a Friendship Breakup, by Lauren Foster, prompted me to look back at former friendships. Her tips for working through the process included: allowing oneself room to mourn, letting go, giving thanks, and finally, forming new friendships. It struck a chord with me, and I wondered if breaking up with friends was as difficult as breaking up with a significant other.
Social media allowed me to reconnect with many old friends, meet the man who became Hubby, and find new sets of like-minded people who shared my interests in Zumba, health and weight loss, Nursing and reading. I met my Zumba instructor friends in 2008, at the ZIN (Zumba Instructors Network) Convention, after “speaking” with them on an everyday basis through a networking message board. When we met in person for the first time, it felt like a reunion of long-time friends. We had a wonderful time together and remained connected, through Facebook, even though we are scattered throughout the country. Similarly, I remained connected with new Nursing school friends and old high school and college friends.
Facebook also brought new people into my life and several acquaintances became friends. Because I craved the one-on-one interaction of looking someone in the eye when speaking with them, I wanted to meet online friends in person. Logistically, that was impossible. Additionally, there was a layer of anonymity and artifice as we could create an online persona different from our own. There was a chance that we were getting a “sanitized for the internet” version of someone’s personality, but I think people’s true colors eventually surfaced the more we got to know each other.
Recently, a couple of my online friendships reached a logical end. One was easily dismissed, as she was not someone I felt comfortable confiding in. She was an oversensitive, passive/aggressive person whose feelings were easily hurt. Moreover, her definition of confidentiality and mine were incompatible. Communicating with her was simply tiresome and reminiscent of volatile, hormone-driven Middle School friendships. Peace. Out.
The other break up hurt. She and I bonded over mutual experiences and beliefs. Unfortunately, her image of me was influenced by others and she accused me of speaking ill of her behind her back. At the same time she was speaking ill of me. I freely admitted to speaking (er, gossiping…gulp) about her, but my “error” was calling her out for doing the same thing.
I developed my own thick skin, but that did not mean that I had not suffered at the hands of Regina George and her ostracizing band of Mean Girls. After reaching out to her a couple of times, it became abundantly clear that she no longer wanted my friendship. I took a relationship break, as it became obvious that I was a”fan friend” there to build her up, rather than a partner in the relationship. I said goodbye privately to the friendship, and mentally moved her to my “cordial acquaintances” list.
The pain of losing the connections was similar to breakups I had with men. The drama associated with them, however, was decidedly female. While I didn’t have physical relationships with my female friends, I was still sad to see them leave. Once these friendships ended I immediately felt lighter, as if a weight had been removed from my chest. As I realized I would not be speaking with these people everyday as I had grown accustomed to, I embraced a short grieving period.
Then, something astounding happened.
I found TIME. Time to speak with other online friends, time to spend cleaning up my house, time to read other books, time to watch television, time to work and most importantly, time to spend with my family! It was not only liberating, but empowering and humbling. As those doors closed, others opened. I just needed to allow them the space, take a deep breath and plunge back in.
Tell me about your experience breaking up with friends. Was it an ugly breakup or did you just drift away from each other? Did you ever reconnect with the old friends?
The Devil’s in the Terminology
I have known the Haunted Librarian for over twenty years and have been following her blog since its debut. Fascinating information about paranormal investigations and hauntings.
The Devil’s in the Terminology
Terminology is important in any field of study, especially the paranormal. However, a lot of us use certain terms interchangeably. Take the words “ghost” and “spirit.” Previously I used these two words as one. Now, I stand corrected. They are distinctly different. “Ghost” is the popular term used to indicate the presence of an unexplained entity; whereas, “spirit” means the essence of a deceased person. It is the personality of the deceased. Human beings have spirit. When investigating a purported haunting, paranormal investigators should use the term “ghost.”
The term “soul” is more problematic. Generally, it means the spiritual element of a person and is immortal. Simply put: Soul = Life. That’s a tad simplistic but gets the point across. The person’s soul lives on after death. It descends into heaven. But these elements are hotly debated. I’m reserving this discussion for a future post.
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5-Stars for Gina L. Maxwell’s “Fighting for Irish” – Book Review
Former MMA fighter Aiden “Irish” O’Brien hasn’t stepped into the ring since he accidentally took someone’s life in the heat of rage. When his friend calls in a favor that sends him south to check on family, Irish figures he’s got nothing to lose. His life is on the ropes. The least he can do is make sure the sexy redhead is safe.
Kat MacGregor has forty-eight hours to settle the twenty thousand dollar debt her deadbeat ex-boyfriend owes a crime boss. If she doesn’t, she’ll pay for it–with her life. Kat’s halfway out the door when a sexy new guy walks into the bar and insists he’s there to help.
Irish is forced to fight in the underground MMA circuit to win the money she needs. But he’s been lying to Kat. About who he is, about knowing her sister, about why he comes home bruised every night. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to him, but breaking her trust will cost him the most important fight of his life: the one for her heart.
My Review:
Like Irish’s favorite cranberry juice – Fighting for Irish (A Fighting for Love Novel) (Entangled Brazen) was a bitter, sweet, tart and delicious 5 stars!
We learned about Kat MacGregor, Vanessa MacGregor’s sister, in Rules of Entanglement (A Fighting for Love Novel) (Entangled Brazen). Kat’s upbringing, tough at best and cripplingly devastating at its worst, left her with deep emotional scars and a protective covering around her heart. She was on the run from the Tennessee Mafia and unable to communicate with Vanessa. A worried Vanessa, led Kat’s soon-to-be brother-in-law, Jax, to hire his friend Aiden O’Brien “Irish”, to find, follow and if need be, protect her, in Fighting for Irish.
Irish, a retired MMA fighter, was also hiding a tortured past and despite their best efforts their mutual attraction brought them closer. Together the tore down each other’s walls, brick by brick, exposing more deep seeded pain and allowing the possibility of love to blossom. Both Kat and Irish were beautifully broken characters who deserved healing, forgiveness and the opportunity at happily ever after, as they faced their pasts.
In true Gina L. Maxwell fashion, the sex was explosive. However, the slow, deliberate, yet gentle, buildup to their lovemaking was handled with care, respect and sensitivity for two characters who believed they were unlovable. Ms. Maxwell’s pacing of their relationship, amid the suspense, was impeccable. Of the three books in the series, Fighting for Irish was the most poignantly moving.
While Fighting for Irish, may be read as a standalone novel, I highly recommend reading the first two books in the series – Seducing Cinderella (A Fighting for Love Novel) (Entangled Brazen) and Rules of Entanglement, to get a complete sense of the previous relationships and characters that brought Kat and Irish together. In addition, I am looking forward to reading Xander’s story, as he will be another tough nut to crack, and deserves his own ladylove.
About the Author:
Growing up she dreamed of helping people escape reality with her acting abilities…until college when she realized she had none to speak of. Another ten years passed before she discovered a different means to accomplishing the same dream: writing stories of love and passion for addicts just like her. Her debut novel, Seducing Cinderella, landed on the USA Today and NY Times Bestseller lists in less than a month.
Now she splits her time between writing more books and acting as Boss of the world’s first organized romance mafia, the Maxwell Mob.Thanks to the support she receives from her amazing family, Gina is finally able to live her dream of bringing a little romantic fantasy to the world, one steamy novel at a time.
Find out more about Gina on her website, follow her on Twitter, and Pinterest and like her Facebook page.
5-Stars and 2 Snaps in Z-Formation for Avery Flynn’s “High-Heeled Wonder” – Book Review
Sylvie Bissette may be one of Harbor City’s youngest glitterati, but only her best friends know her most closely guarded secret. She’s the woman behind The High-Heeled Wonder, the newest must-read blog for fashionistas everywhere. Gossip, fashion advice, exposés. Too bad some people can’t take a little criticism. When an internet troll discovers her secret identity, Sylvie turns to security expert Tony Falcon for help. The investigator from the other side of the tracks is the olive oil to her Evian water, but it’s not just her temper he’s inciting…
Tony Falcon wouldn’t know a kitten heel from a tabby cat, but since most of the bad guys he tracks down aren’t wearing stilettos, it’s never been a problem…until he meets Sylvie. The feisty fashionista may be his best chance at catching the criminals responsible for his best friend’s murder. But solving that case means going after the people Sylvie cares about, and soon the attraction—and the danger—has him wondering if solving the case is worth hurting the woman he can’t stop fantasizing about …
When Sylvie’s stalker escalates from sending nasty e-mails to trying to run her over in broad daylight, Tony goes undercover as Sylvie’s boyfriend to infiltrate the close-knit fashion community. In a world full of overblown egos and cut-throat ambition, Tony and Sylvie must work together to find her revenge-obsessed stalker before Sylvie ends up with a literal knife in the back.
My Review:
Bogie Meets Gracie Lou Freebush and they “Make it Work”
Sylvie Bissette was the mastermind behind the popular, “High-Heeled Wonder,” a blog that exposed all of the fashion industry’s dirty little, and not so little, secrets. Her scoops garnered her huge a fan base, the ire of both a magazine’s editor-in-chief and a self-absorbed, talentless designer and her very own cyberstalker. This troll indicated he/she would stop at nothing to reveal Sylvie’s identity and take down her blog.
After a very public attempt on her life, she relented to having Tony Falcon, former cop turned security expert, pose as her boyfriend to discover who was threatening her. At the same time, he was trying to track down the criminals who killed his best friend. Tony, who never had a problem maintaining his distance from his charges, met his match in feisty Sylvie, who was determined to “help” with the investigation. As the threats against Sylvie escalated, so did Tony’s innate need to protect her. The more time they spent together, the more problematic their mutual attraction became. When they finally gave in to temptation, it culminated in a fully clothed, sultry exploration that only heightened their appetite for each other.
Clues were pieced together to deduce the identity of the perpetrator, while Sylvie and Tony continued to become close. He narrowed down the list of suspects. Unfortunately, that list included people Sylvie cared deeply for. Hell-bent on retribution, yet blinded by hurt, Tony uttered one of the most touching boy-loses-girl lines “You’re going to hate me later. You will and when you do, promise you’ll give me the chance to fix it,” as he broke Sylvie’s heart – along with his own.
Like a delightful visit to Imelda Marcos’ legendary shoe closet, High-heeled Wonder (A Killer Style Novel) (Entangled Ignite) took readers on a sexy, chick lit ride worthy of early Helen Fielding or Sophie Kinsella. Additionally, Avery Flynn added classic thriller plot twists, thrills and surprises. Her characters were multi-layered, balanced and intelligent. Sylvie was a fully developed, professional woman who overcame a tragic childhood and Tony was the wounded alpha, with a heart of gold, who needed her to begin to heal. A colorful and motley crew of secondary characters – their families, friends, and coworkers, provided further action, suspense and comic relief.
Both my inner fashionista and nerd girl appreciated the references to the fashion industry, as well as, the nod to Doctor Who and the gaming world. High-heeled Wonder (A Killer Style Novel) (Entangled Ignite) earns an old-school, Men on Film, two-snaps in Z-Formation and my recommendation as a great book to curl up with on a cold winter’s day. I look forward to Ms. Flynn’s next book.
Disclaimer: I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review. Then purchased the book for my private library.
About the Author:
Avery Flynn has three slightly-wild children, loves a hockey-addicted husband and is desperately hoping someone invents the coffee IV drip.
She fell in love with romance while reading Johanna Lindsey’s Mallory books. It wasn’t long before Avery had read through all the romance offerings at her local library. Needing a romance fix, she turned to Harlequin’s four books a month home delivery service to ease the withdrawal symptoms. That worked for a short time, but it wasn’t long before the local book stores’ staffs knew her by name.
Avery was a reader before she was a writer and hopes to always be both. She loves to write about smartass alpha heroes who are as good with a quip as they are with their *ahem* other God-given talents. Her heroines are feisty, fierce and fantastic. Brainy and brave, these ladies know how to stand on their own two feet and knock the bad guys off theirs.
Find out more about Avery on her website, follow her on Twitter and Pinterest, and like her on her Facebook page. Also, if you figure out how to send Oreos through the Internet, she’ll be your best friend for life.
Link of the Week – Indie Vs. Trad Publishing
There was quite an exchange last week On the blog A Newbie’s Guide to Publishing between mystery, horror, thriller author Joe Konrath, who just so happens to be a huge advocate and pioneer for self-publishing, and Kensington CEO and President Steve Zacharius. It was an open, polite, matter-of-fact, Q&A about indie publishing versus trad publishing, including candid talk of sales numbers, marketing, success or lack thereof in both markets, Amazon, pricing, cover art, and necromancers and muppets (you have to read it to know why), to name a few. Though they agreed to disagree on so many of the topics, Zacharius seemed to be genuinely curious as to the appeal of the rising tide in self-publishing and Konrath, in his usual wit, answered solidly.
No matter how you publish, this post is a great source of information. Just be prepared. The post was updated four times. Get your favorite…
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5-Stars for Robin Covington’s “Sweet Southern Betrayal” – Book Review
Privileged and ambitious attorney Teague Elliott is on the fast-track to getting everything he wants. All he has to do is stay on the straight and narrow and a high-profile political career is his for the taking. Until he wakes up naked with a Vegas showgirl…
Risa Clay has worked hard to put her showgirl past behind her and start fresh. But she owes ten grand to the wrong people, and to pay off her debt, she agrees to betray a stranger. . .but she ends up with a husband and guilty conscience.
My Review:
“Messy is where the good stuff lives.” ~ Risa Clay
Sweet Southern Betrayal: A Boys Are Back in Town Novel (Entangled Indulgence), the third book of Robin Covington’s “Boys are Back in Town” series, featured attorney, Teague Elliot. Known as a “fixer” among the elite power brokers of Washington D.C., he worked at one of the most prestigious firms and had political aspirations. He stayed away from anything he considered “messy,” like relationships. While attending his sister, Taylor’s wedding to his best friend, Lucky, in Las Vegas, he met redheaded bombshell, Risa Clay – his new showgirl wife. His showgirl wife who owned a side business selling tasteful “marital aids.” Not exactly the ideal woman for a man with dreams of living in the White House. Everything about Risa was “messy.” And personal. And amazing.
They agreed to keep their marriage a secret. Unfortunately, secrets have a way of taking on a life of their own, and soon Teague’s family, friends and colleagues found out about Risa. As beautiful as she was on the outside, Risa was even lovelier on the inside. She immediately tried to protect Teague from the possible repercussions of their Vegas nuptials, and knowingly placed herself directly in harm’s way.
At its core, Sweet Southern Betrayal was an “opposites attract” story, but as the layers were peeled away, we learned that both Risa and Teague were survivors. They saw the dreams they never believed could be realized, in and with, each other. It required that they to look past their set life plans, and into an unknown, unexpected and uncontrollable future. How they navigated it was beautifully crafted, through self-doubt, heartbreak, betrayal, forgiveness, and the possibility of love. In addition to some very steamy sex.
Many series have recurring characters that make cameo appearances, but Ms. Covington created a deep connection between the four friends – Teague, Lucky, Jack and Beck – that was itself another fully developed character. The men formed a bond in childhood that sustained them through personal and professional successes and failures. Ms. Covington took that circle of friendship and expanded it, as each man found love, and their family of friends grew.
While each book may be read as a stand-alone novel, I highly encourage readers to read A Night of Southern Comfort (The Boys are Back in Town Series) (Entangled Indulgence) and His Southern Temptation (The Boys are Back in Town Series) (Entangled Indulgence). Ms. Covington is writing Beck’s book and it promises to be as emotional, entertaining and hot, as the rest of the series.
Disclaimer: While I received an ARC of this book for an honest review, I purchased it for my “Boys are Back in Town” Collection.
About the Author:
Robin Covington, who NYT Best Selling authors, Robyn Carr and Carly Phillips, said was their new “auto-buy author”, writes sizzling hot contemporary and paranormal romance.
A Night of Southern Comfort, her best-selling debut novel was a 2012 finalist in the RT Book Reviews Reviewers Choice Awards, earned 4.5 stars and was touted by RT Book Reviews as bringing a “fresh, modern feel to the genre while still sticking to the things that get our adrenaline pumping — sex and danger”. When she’s not exploring the theme of fooling around and falling in love, she’s collecting tasty man candy, indulging in a little comic book geek love, and stalking Joe Manganiello.
Robin is a member of the Romance Writers of America, the Washington and Maryland Romance Writers, a faculty member at Romance University, a member of the Waterworld Mermaids, and a contributor to the Happy Ever After blog at USA Today. You can find Robin on her website, Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter (@RobinCovington).
Robin lives in Maryland with her hilarious husband, brilliant children, and ginormous puppies.
XMAS JAMMIES PART 2 : Shopping Advice from Your Husbands
Another funny cautionary tale from Holderness!
Ahh, the magic of the holidays. The happiness (and insanity) that happens when families get together… the look on a child’s face while tearing apart wrapping paper.
And, one of my favorite parts, the fake reaction you give your spouse when you open a clothing box and it’s something that you would NEVER wear.
“Oh, um, honey, I, uh, love it!”
Granted, this goes both ways. 10 years ago I bought my wife a pair of shoes that she has worn TWICE. She won’t give them away or chuck them because of their “sentimental” value, but what was I thinking? Clothing is so incredibly personal. What’s more, most of us would rather grin and wear it than disappoint our loved ones.
So, lets get it all out on the table. Ladies, here is some shopping advice from the husbands who absolutely adore you, but haven’t had the courage to say…
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8 Tips to Make Sure Everyone on Twitter Hates Us
As a social media expert, I run into all kinds of strange behavior and tips that make me scratch my head. Social media is social, meaning it’s supposed to be an extension of how we might interact with other human beings in person. Today’s post (obviously) is tongue-and-cheek, but humor can be the best teacher even if we’ve oopsed.
Tip #1—Only Use Automation
Writing a 140 characters is SUPER time-consuming. We aren’t Jack London. Besides, people LOVE talking to robots. I know when I feel lonely, I call AT&T because I know a human being will NEVER answer…EVER. Humans can be so boring and don’t offer us the option of hitting 6 if we want to hear everything they just said all over again.
Real Life Application: Program cell phones to call friends and family at regular intervals to ask for money. They’d dig that.
Tip #2—Make Sure All Preprogrammed…
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“Fifty Shades of Grey” to Exclude Dirty Sex Scenes & More in Today’s Candy Dish
The train wreck that is the 50 Shades “movie project” continues. Be sure you have enough popcorn.
10 Things I Hate About Sex (Scenes)
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10 Things I Hate About Sex (Scenes)
Smart Bitches, Trashy Books are having a hysterical discussion on hysterical, and sometimes cringe-worthy descriptions of sex in romance books. Enjoy!
Reading, Drinking and Dancing with a Chaser of Snark 