Tag: newark

Posted on

Aaron Diaz & At The Shore #ManCandyMonday

Happy Man Candy Monday! I’ve started the timeline for #3 in the At the Shore series and am creating in my brain the image for Carlo Teixeira, the hero in #3. Carlo is of Portuguese descent and his family lives in the Ironbound section of Newark. He has a number of older brothers who run the Caminho bakery, but two younger brothers (who I hope to spin off into their own stories later!).

There are a number of Latin men who could fit the part of Carlo, the caterer extraordinaire, and he’s taking shape physically in my brain. As I was searching for assistance with this, a hard job but someone has to do it, I ran across sexy Aaron Diaz.

Aaron was born in Mexico on March 7. OMG, we share a birthday. How right is that?

Aaron has appeared in a number of telenovelas and also had a role in the short-lived PAN AM series on ABC and is now appearing on QUANTICO.

Thanks to Aaron Diaz’s Instagram for this photo! You can follow Aaron at the following sites:

Website: http://aarondiazspencer.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AaronDiazMX/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aarondiaz/?hl=en
Twitter: https://twitter.com/AaronDiazSVK

🍊

A post shared by Aaron Diaz (@aarondiaz) on

Speaking of At the Shore, don’t forget the #AttheShore Cover Reveal for One Summer Night on May 11. Sign up and get behind the scenes tidbits and a chance for a slew of #giveaways! http://bit.ly/2qs0vYO

Posted on

#WriteWed The Ironbound Section & At the Shore

One of the things that I wanted to show with the At the Shore contemporary romance series is the diversity of New Jersey, both ethnically and economically. While Maggie and Owen from ONE SUMMER NIGHT are both well-off, Connie and Emma, the heroines of #2 and #3 in the series respectively, have both had to work hard to achieve what they have.

As for ethnically, Connie represents the large Cuban population of Union City. Emma is a suburban girl from Edison. The hero in #3 is Carlo Texeira from the Ironbound section of Newark.

I’m getting ready to write a scene in #2 where you find out a little bit more about Carlo and his family, who play a substantial role in #3. In that scene, you get to see a big Portuguese-style family dinner at their Ironbound home.

The Ironbound is a unique section of the city of Newark. It’s located not all that far from Newark Penn Station and between the airport and the Passaic River. It is a largely Portuguese neighborhood with the first immigrants from Portugal arriving in the early 1900s along with Spaniards from Galicia (my family’s part of Spain). In fact, many Portuguese food dishes are very similar to those from Galicia.

The main avenue in the Ironbound is Ferry Street which abounds with a number of mom and pop Portuguese shops along with a number of other Latin restaurants. In #3, the hero’s family has owned a successful bakery there since the 1930s. Carlo’s older brothers now run the business and Carlo has struck out on his own to make a life down the shore. He’s Emma’s Go-to-Guy in more than one way, although she refuses to admit that.

Ferry Street, as you might guess, was named after a ferry that ran between Newark and other locations to the east. Check out the video below that shows you Ferry Street. If part of it looks familiar, it’s because it made an appearance in the beginning of the 2005 remake of War of the Worlds (2:30 to 2:45 in the video). If you can’t see the video below, use this link: https://youtu.be/PGP_94G3Vms

Posted on

Customer Service Reigns at Southwest Airlines

Thanks to both of my jobs and my family’s love of travel, I often have to fly to get to an assortment of destinations. You can imagine that in all that time I’ve faced a number of dilemmas. Cancelled flights. Lost luggage. Turbulent rides. The latter being one of the worst since I have a fear of heights and am not a comfortable passenger in those twenty-five thousand foot high roller coasters.

I know there is nothing that a pilot can sometimes do about those rough rides and I just wait them out as best I can.

But there is something airlines can do about the rest and to my very pleasant surprise Southwest Airlines did just that.

When floods in Nashville forced me to change my flight to Orlando, the only Southwest Airlines charge was the difference in the cost of the two tickets due to the change in destination. No $150 change fee the way my normal carrier charges when stuff happens and flights need to get changed. The change fee would lower to $50 if I waited to do it on the same day as the flight, but no one ever advised me of that. I discovered that fact online recently.

Did I mention that I was originally flying Southwest because their rates were so much cheaper than my normal carrier’s that it was worth the drive down to Philadelphia? 217 versus 337?

I had two big bags with me, one with clothes and one with promo materials. Cost with my normal carrier: $60 if checked at the airport or $55 if done online. Cost with Southwest: $0. Yes, you are seeing that right. Zero dollars for two bags.

Money saved so far: $240 (120 plus 120 in baggage fees).

When I arrived in Orlando I discovered that the handle on my bag had gotten ripped off on one side making it nearly impossible for me to lift it. I headed to the luggage claim area and within about five minutes was handed a brand new bag to replace the one that had been damaged. Nicer than my old beat up bag and with a TSA approved lock to boot.

No questions, no problems. A warm smile on the face of the rep as she helped me deal with the bag issue.

What more can you ask for?

How about roomier seats and more leg room? Yep, you got that, too.

Which leaves me with only one question: When are you coming to Newark, Southwest Airlines?

Proudly powered by WordPress