Happy Friday! How about some Trans-Siberian Orchestra Christmas Eve Sarajevo? I love this song and it always pumps me up for the holidays! If you can’t see the video below, you can cut and paste this link: https://youtu.be/MHioIlbnS_A
#ThrowbackThursday Goodbye Lord & Taylor
Since 1914, Lord & Taylor has had its flagship store on New York City’s Fifth Avenue. Sadly it was announced earlier this year that the current owner, Canadian company Hudson’s Bay Co., has sold the lovely landmark building to WeWork (other locations will remain open). For years the Lord & Taylor Christmas windows were the highlight of my family’s holiday outing to New York City. The demise of this location hits hard because of that and because it reminds me of another venerable retail institution which was shuttered and which was like part of my family – B. Altman’s. My dad worked at Altman’s for over twenty years and I worked there as well to pay for high school and college expenses. I actually based the store in ONE SUMMER NIGHT on Altman’s which is still so dear to my heart.
So today’s Throwback Thursday is an homage to the Lord & Taylor Christmas windows. Thank you for so many wonderful years and memories. You will be missed.
FYI – Hudson’s Bay also owns Saks Fifth Avenue. Wonder if that location will be the next with a “For Sale” sign?
The Creative Process – #WriteWed
I always tell writers that there is no right way to write since the creative process is different for everyone. The only wrong thing to do is to not write! My process lately starts with handwriting ideas for the characters and the basic plot. Letting that sit for a day or so while I think about that initial idea before refining it.
I used to be a pantser, but can’t say I’m a plotter. I’m kind of a hybrid since I only lay out gross ideas for the plot and let the story move along as the characters demand. (Damn bossy characters!)
Right now I’m working on #4 At the Shore which will feature some new characters that I introduce in #3 At the Shore – Sea Kiss Salsa. In that story you get to meet Carlo’s brothers and I’m thinking that the next two books in the series will feature the younger sexy Gonzalez brothers, Tomás and Paolo. In #3 Army Ranger Tomás is home on leave to recuperate from an injury and I loved exploring what might be happening with one of the local business owners, Jesse, who you will also meet in #3.
I’m also busy with trying to get rights back to some earlier books as well as a proposal for some suspense/thriller stories. Wish me luck with both!
Christmas Cookie Recipes #TuesdayTip
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas all over so it’s time to think about some holiday baking! My fried Kathy makes the most delicious walnut crescent cookies every Christmas and we look forward to them every year. My other friend Jayne, a regular at our holiday table, also brings tasty cookie treats for our Christmas Eve dessert. So today I’m sharing some links to Christmas cookies you might like to try for the holidays! Just paste and copy the links into your browser!**
Hershey’s Christmas Cookie Pizza: http://bit.ly/2P5rmSS
Betty Crocker Recipes & 24 days of Cookies e-mail: http://bit.ly/2OZNRbX
Good Housekeeping 100 Top Christmas Cookie Recipes: http://bit.ly/2P3g2qn
Country Living 60+ Recipes: http://bit.ly/2P4rZME
Walnut Crescent Cookies: http://bit.ly/2P2WEK8
**Why no active links? Well, Google is punishing sites with broken links and with third party sites changing up content, it’s really hard not to have broken live links. Since I’ve been dinged by Google (and with over 6000 links it’s no wonder), I’ve got a link checker working on cleaning things up, but thought I’d avoid the issue by not having hyperlinks in the posts.
It’s Turkey Time in NYC!
The city is all ready for the big Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade. Grandstand is up and so are the decorations. They’ll begin filling up the balloons later today. I just hope the wind and chill doesn’t ground the balloons! This is a photo of the turkey in front of the Macy’s grandstand for the parade. When you see it tomorrow on television, you can tell everyone you saw it first here! LOL!
Hope you all have a fabulous Thanksgiving!
Amazon Kindle Giveaway!
Don’t miss out on your chance to snare one of 20 Amazon Kindle copies of ONE SUMMER NIGHT that are up for grabs at this #Giveaway https://giveaway.amazon.com/p/a22bc6cd1f71d715
#FridayFeeling – Some of my fav storage ideas!
It’s Friday, yeah! For me that means a couple of days away from office work and turning my attention to work at home. I know my husband cringes sometimes (well a lot of the time) when Friday approaches since he knows what that means, especially during the not summer months: Projects.
I love Projects with a capital P. I love to make things whether it takes shape in the form of a new story, work bench, or jewelry. I love to work with my hands and that takes many forms.
With us downsizing my “making” has become about me moving and repurposing as well as getting rid of things I no longer need. To do that I’ve really gone big time to my trusted sources for ideas on storage and other things. Today I’m sharing some of my fav (and IMHO workable) ideas!
Bike Rack (a problem for most people with little space for them): http://bit.ly/2OKjVk1
Glass and Liquor (I’m planning something a little different, but still I loved this idea): http://bit.ly/2OKjVk1
Ladders (So much you can do with them. 2 with some long boards = bookcases!): http://bit.ly/2OKErko
Hang it up: Tin cans, 6 hooks (http://bit.ly/2OKEOvi) or these wall storage items from IKEA: http://bit.ly/2OMxgbf
Pegboard: It’s not for your garage anymore! Paint it! Frame it! Hang! http://bit.ly/2ONnGVC
Glass Containers: For health reasons, I’ve started replacing a lot of my plastic containers with glass. Best places to buy are IKEA, Target, Home Sense and a local restaurant and supply place. Make sure they are lead free. I always try to buy ones made in the good ol’ USA.
Baskets: Yes, I have them! All over to store an assortment of items. From shoes to office items to DVDs, baskets of any kind help corral the clutter once you’ve tossed what you no longer need. Best sources for baskets for me were IKEA and Home Sense (https://us.homesense.com/).
If you’re like me and love to do Projects, be sure to check out these valuable resources and maybe sign up for their newsletters:
https://www.diynetwork.com/
https://www.hgtv.com/
https://www.ikea.com (Get the catalogue and see how they do it!)
Have an awesome Friday and Happy Projects!
