Hi All,

How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am!

Yes, I am. I was a bit ticked off this weekend. I got some very upsetting mail. I've known all along there would be two court dates for garnishment for medical bills. I went to one in October and the garnishment started in with the last paycheck in December. Then on Saturday I received, not the court summons, but the final judgment. It seems they failed to send me the summons to appear on February 1. According to the letter I had 15 days from the date the judgment was filed to send in the information for garnishment. I received that judgment letter on Saturday, 11 February, giving me 4 days, and not even, three really, and with the 12th being a Sunday, really only 2 days, considering the mail. If I didn't comply with the judgment it would mean I would be in contempt of court and facing 6 months in jail. By the way, the penned date on the letter was February 6. The letter wasn't sent out until after that date, and I'm supposed to get all this taken care of in 2 days???? Not likely. However, good things have happened recently that came to my aide. I received my Income Tax Refund, so I just went to my online bill pay and set up the bill. No garnishment - paid in full, thanks to Uncle Sam. I also sent a 'kind' letter to the lawyer, which went in today's mail. I told my son I wasn't recanting one word of the letter. Actually, I did. I misused one word in the letter and had to put in the correct word, hit print and it is now sitting in my mailbox waiting for the mailman to take it.

By the way, my son approved the letter. He said it was business only as he read it. I didn't get sarcastic as I did in one other letter I had to re-write several times to the other lawyer for the first garnishment. That letter proved fruitless. If you are under the misbegotten notion that lawyers care about your circumstances, or that they will work with you, think again. They care about nothing except their pockets, and as long as you fill them with your hard-earned money, they are happy.

On another note, today I had to take Pip to the vet. It was all good until it was time to leave. He got into a dog fight as we were leaving. You could call it Dogfight at the Okay Corral. I was very happy she didn't bite them, the other dog owner had two dogs, and she got into it with both of them. Needless to say, we were ushered out the side door. Pip did NOT get a treat when we got home.

Now for the good news. I got the first section of Scarred back from the proofreaders. One has finished reading it, and given the rest of the manuscript to the other, while I came away with the first 198 pages. Both people love the manuscript, and I got the first tweaking done this morning when I got up. It wasn't bad, just some punctuation, and in a couple areas, finding the right era terms. So all is good as I also work through the submission process. I have most of the pre-work done. I'm still working on the front cover picture. I know what I want for the picture, it's coming up with it that's proving difficult. I did come up with the back cover copy, and am quite happy with it. Now I just have to find out what the editors will say about it and what I need to change for it to be alluring so people will want to buy it.

All in all, it is a very good Monday, as I work towards getting Scarred ready for publishing. So while I get more work done on Scarred, edit and revise Manifest Destiny and other manuscripts, you all

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great! I am!!!

Well, today, almost three months into winter, it finally showed up. It almost looks like a blizzard out there right now, and those of you who know me, at least from the site and the blogs, know I love winter and I love snow, so this is fantastic!

I know that it looks nice from the inside, but I can tell you from a driving standpoint, the roads are slippery at the intersections, and the snow is blowing at a good clip. I don't know what it will be like when I have to go back to work tonight, but I might have to give myself more time to get in, unless this has died down by then. We're only supposed to get a couple inches, but we'll know how much when all is said and done.

As for Scarred - I now have my check-in coordinator, received all the information - I still have to read and go over all of it. It came in before I went to bed yesterday and I didn't have a lot of time to look at it before I went to work last night, so I'll look at it this morning to see what I need to do to make this ready for publishing. I've also come up with the design for the front cover, and I'm totally excited about it, now I just have to either find a picture that would represent what I want, or an artist to sketch it. I have two in mind, just in case I have to have the artwork done. So everything is getting started, and that is very exciting.

Other than that, nothing else is going on, but it does look nice out as I look out my window here in my office.

Have a great day and

Keep on Writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all doing today/tonight? I hope you are all fantastic. I am!!!

I am on my way to becoming an author, the only step I need to do now is submit my manuscript and I will do that as soon as I get it back from my proofreaders.

I also have to come up with the back cover and dust jacket info regarding the book. It seems to be the hardest thing I've done regarding Scarred, but I'll do it and you will see the results when you purchase my book.

In the mean time, I have another book to work on, and while I do that you also

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all doing today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am!!!

Well, yesterday I talked with the agent from WestBow Press and had a few more questions answered, and I'm raring to go. I have one of my tax refunds in the bank, and I'm waiting on the big one, hopefully this week. As soon as I get it, I can move forward with the book.

I found out it will be sent as an electronic submission, so all the work I've done making certain it was correctly formatted, was unnecessary. If I was going traditional it would be, but not self-publishing. She said they would format it to fit a 6x9 book - your average book. I also found out how long it will take from submission to completion - 90-120 days. So look for Scarred as early as May. I will keep you updated.

Other than that, I've started the revision and editing for Manifest Destiny, so I'll be taking it off the site soon. I haven't had a lot of reviews on it, but those who read it seem to like it, except for one person, and quite frankly, he's only one person. Nobody likes every author, we all have our tastes and preferences.

With that said, I'm going back to writing and you all

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am!

I am reminded that it has been 14 days since my last blog, so I thought I would write something.

Scarred is in the hands of proofers, one has threatened the RED pen on it. I got an email from her asking about 3 hole punching it and putting it in a binder - as you can imagine I paled at the thought. I quickly told her NO. I also as an after thought sent an email regarding contractions and the time period it's set in, so she wouldn't red pen every word that would normally be a contraction.

I have also begun the revision/editing process for Manifest Destiny, also found in my port. I'm looking for good critiques for it. In my work, I realized I have some revision/editing to do on Scarred in one area that I messed up on. They didn't have pockets in their clothes in the 1700s, they wore them tied around their waist and had slits in their clothes so they could reach their pocket. So I'll get that taken care of as soon as possible.

Other than that, everything is going as well as can be expected. My finances are in a shambles, thanks to the garnishment. Someone at church suggested I go directly to the hospital and talk to billing. She said someone did that, and they wiped the bill out. It's worth a shot, though my mind is telling me it won't do any good.

Today is an unusual day for me. Normally working third shift, and normally off on Tuesday until 10:30 tonight, I have to be at work for training at 8AM and 10AM, so I will have a total of 4.5 hours of work, amounting to overtime before I start this work week tonight. I'll also end up going to bed late as a result and have a maximum of six hours of sleep before I have to get up for work tonight. It could be less, since I'll also need to eat before I go to bed. I'm not looking forward to tonight's shift. I'm going to be creative to stay awake through the night hours. I'll be leaving in just over an hour.

In the meantime, I'll get some more writing done, and maybe play on FB for a little bit. We'll see.

So while I get busy on my writing, you also

Keep on Writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all fantastic. I am!

Well it's the day after - the first playoff game that is for the Super Bowl next month and the Packers lost so we won't be going to the Super Bowl as I was so confident we would. It was a tough loss, but it was also hard to watch all the mistakes we made. As disappointing as it is that we lost the first playoff game of the season, I understand it's only a game, and no, I did not pin all my hopes and dreams on a football game. Yes, I'm a solid Packers fan, but if you know me at all, I'm even more a solid Jesus fan. On Him I do have all my hopes and dreams and I know He will never lose.

Well, things got a little bit tough this past week. My computer died. My withdrawal was not an easy thing to see, but things are better and under control. I have it fixed so I'm doing a lot better.

I was in the middle - literally - of the final edit for Scarred when the power died. It was only the power supply, my work is and was secure. Things are looking up now. I have the first half in a friend's hands from church who is proofing it for me. I have two people from church who will do that for me before I send it to the publisher in just a couple months now. I have also backed it up on my Google Docs, so that if something should happen to it, I still have it, no matter what. At the moment I'm 200 pages from completion of the final edit and am very excited to have this part of the journey to publication completed.

Well, that's it for now. I'm going to get back to my book, or perhaps I should go to bed, it's that time. While I decide what's the best course of action you

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi all,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am!

I read an email yesterday that how we are is a state of mind, and right now I settle in my mind that I am great despite how life is really looking at the moment with all it's twists and curves that want me to slink away in defeat.

Yes, I could easily slink away in defeat with my finances in the mess they are because of the two lawsuits that hit me the end of last year. I was not expecting either one of them, and to feel the garnishment for something I was already paying before my day in court really doesn't seem right. I'm also still waiting on the court summons for the second lawsuit which was actually the first as it came out of the blue at me before the court summons for the situation I'm currently facing.

What put me in this position? Am I really a bad person that someone would want to take me to court for past bills? Not at all. For the bill that is currently under garnishment, I was already paying that bill, and saw no reason for the judgment against me and tried to tell the judge that. He simply told me the company - hospital - had the right to take me to court over the bill even though I was paying it. For the other one I'm still waiting on, that one literally hit me from left field. I had no idea I owed anything as old as four years. I never received any bills to make payments on, and thought I was paying it when I paid the hospital - different one, for services rendered and I knew how happy I was when that bill paid off. I really thought I was in the clear.

So with judgments against me, how can I say I'm feeling great? Because I've set my heart and mind to feeling great no matter what comes against me.

I know the truth that God will take care of me no matter who grim things look, and they look grim. But you've all heard the saying that things don't always look as bad as they are. So I'm going to take one day at a time and trust God to see me through each day.

Right now I'm doing a jig, figuratively. For those who know me, I love winter. Today, it is finally snowing. Yes, we've gotten a little bit here and there, barely enough to cover the ground and the snow we got for Christmas and again for New Year's, didn't cover the ground. The grass showed through the and was melted by Christmas and New Year's night. Now however, the snow is flying - literally. We have wind gusts up to 20 MPH and it's supposed to keep snowing until Friday - tomorrow. That feels a long ways away, as I went to work on Wednesday night when they had the winter advisory for and finishing off tomorrow - two days of snow, though it didn't start when the weatherman - can't trust them to be right on every time - said it would. The original prediction was for around midnight. I checked all night - no snow until just before I got off work, and now it's heavy enough you can see it, and it looks good. They are talking 4-7" before it's over. Not a lot, but it will at least cover the grass this time, and we might need to shovel. So far we haven't needed the shovel yet this winter.

I had a cup of hot chocolate with marshmallows in it to encourage the snowflakes, and it seems to have worked. When I came home, you couldn't see the snow it was so light and fine, now you can. and I'm displaying a very happy - happy face. :)

In other news the Packers are in the playoffs. Of course I believe we'll go to the Super Bowl again this year. If you know anything about the Packers you know they went to Super Bowls 1 and 2 - won both, 31 and 32, lost the second, and went last year and won, so it only stands to reason we have to do a repeat. And of course with this years record 15-1, I also expect we'll win.

In other news closer to home - my computer went on the blink for a week. It died. It was the power supply, so I don't have to worry about my hard drive crashing, it's in good shape. Better than I was for the past week. I went through computer withdrawal - not a pretty sight. I was doing real well with the edit for Scarred too, just 265 pages to go and it will be ready for submission to the publisher. Now I can get back at it.

So while I do that, you all


Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all blessed beyond your wildest imagination. I know I'm blessed.

Well, we've come to the last day of the year. Do you have your resolutions and goals all settled for next year? Once written down, do you have a plan to execute them?

We all have good intentions when a new year comes our way, and many of us will get off to a really great start with our goals, but many of us will fall by the wayside in the effort to achieve and maintain our goals for the coming year.

They say if you can do something for 30 days, it becomes a habit that is hard to break. Here's to good intentioned habits that are hard to break. I hope you will be able to say at the end of 2012 that you achieved all your goals.

The key to achieving your goals is to make them achievable. I know as writers many of you want to see your name on book spines along other books on bookstore shelves. I know that is also one of my goals and I should see that happen this year, God willing.

So while I work on my goals, you also

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am!

Yes, yesterday I ranted and raved. We must do that sometimes. We're human. I'm still a bit upset by what happened, but as I said yesterday, I do know my God is able and He will take care of me through this trying time.

Today I want to bring your attention to the date. We are two days from the New Year. We have the chance to start over, make everything new, turn over a new leaf, make a proclamation that this New Year will be better than this one or any of those gone by have been. I'm certain that right now you're thinking that not all the past years were bad, you can in fact think of a good many good years, and that is good. It is only when we are going through a particular trying season that we can't see the light at the end of the tunnel, hope, or anything but the worst scenario we can think of. For me right now, my worst scenario with my financial situation would be the loss of my home, but I'm expecting my God to come through for me. I know He will not let me down. I know yesterday things looked bleak, but I remember a movie - Apollo 13 when the head of NASA at the time turned to someone and said it would be their finest hour. It was, they brought the astronauts home safe, and my God will see me safely through this time as well, and I will remember this year as yes, a trying year, but one of my finest.

So what resolutions have you made for this year 2012? Are you going to write the next best seller? Are you going to find that agent? Are you going to begin the next best seller? As writers we have a lot of resolutions we can make for ourselves. For me, topping my list of resolutions is getting published, and not even this financial crunch is going to hinder that from becoming a reality. My second goal is to lose weight. I want to feel good about myself physically, mentally, spiritually, and emotionally. When I look in the mirror I want to see a person I can look in the eye and smile at, even laugh at because I have done what I've failed to do for the past fifteen years or so, since I started college and gained all this unsightly weight. My third goal would be to start seriously on the copyrighting program I bought last year and have done very little with, but I want to get started on that making a serious effort to not only complete the course this year, but become a copyrighter big business will hire. If you want to know more about this lucrative At Home business go to AWAI and learn all about it.

Those are my top three goals, and mixed in those would be my spiritual goals - a closer walk with God, learning to trust Him more than I already do, listen more to what He has to say to me, becoming a mighty prayer warrior. I am already a prayer warrior, I just want to go to the next level of prayer warfare.

Well, that's my list, and it is attainable. We need to make attainable goals, so that when we achieve our goals we can feel good about our accomplishments. If we make unrealistic goals, we will assume we are failures, and if you have ever put a word on paper, you are an achiever, and I know everyone here falls in that category.

So now while I edit my best-seller, you all

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all doing today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I'm trying to, but not quite there.

Can I rant and rave? As most of you are aware, I've been hit sidewise in the past couple months with medical suits. I had my first garnishment today, and it didn't look anything like the worksheet I filled out. They took three times plus more than I was expecting, though I had no idea when to expect the garnishment to start. I wish it wasn't on this check which affects my mortgage.

I was so upset by what happened I wrote out a letter, a rebuttal if you will. My son read it and told me I needed to rewrite it. I did. It sounds more like a business letter now instead of the ravings of a mad woman, which I was and still am.

I filled out the worksheet according to the guidelines stipulated, and came up with a number that worked for me. Yes, I had to pull in the apron strings a bit, tighten my belt, and make things work, but with what they intend to garnish, the only thing I can look forward to with another impending garnishment, is the loss of my home. I can't afford what they are doing to me. And I don't know if this garnishment is for one or both checks per month. If both, and I still have another court date coming up, I just don't know when yet, I'm sunk.

I know all the platitudes about how my God is able, I need to keep the faith, just believe, my God is greater than my circumstances. I know them all, I've read, or said them all, and yet, here I am in the middle of a total disaster to my finances and I am sinking fast.

Let's look at what has already taken place. I had this court date at the end of October. This is the end of December. It took two months from the day I stepped into the courtroom until now for the garnishment to take place. If my court date is in January, I'm looking at another garnishment to my paycheck in March, and if they do the same thing with that garnishment that they did to the first, I lose everything. I can't afford almost $400 taken from my paycheck.

I know I have some things happening on my horizon, such as a book being published with my tax money, and I have another possible income stream, if I can get myself motivated enough to get the course completed. This should motivate me big time. Right now, all I want to do is go over to my Facebook account and play games to take my mind off what happened and calm down. I really need to calm down, then I can look at this from a realistic point of view, maybe.

I'll have my son read over the letter again, and if he passes it, I'll put it in the mail. If not, I'll work on yet another revision of this letter. After all, what do writers do best if not revision.

While I work on calming down, you all

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Merry Christmas to All,

How are you all today, tonight? I hope you are all excellent in body, soul, and spirit. I am!

Christmas comes once a year, and many of you are shouting praise for that because you have spent more than you want to think about on gifts, trips, food, and everything that goes into the holiday.

This year, I can honestly say, I did not spend very much on gifts. Christmas isn't about my gifts to my family or what they will give me. Christmas is about one very special gift - the one God gave humanity in the form of a baby.

Why would God give us His Son, wrapped up in swaddling cloths, and sleeping in a manger - a feeding trough for animals? Why would God cause His son to be born of a lowly teenager and carpenter instead of in a palace in the most famous city in Israel - Jerusalem. After all isn't that where kings are born?

Do you remember the statement God does not call the qualified, but qualifies the called?

Here we see Jesus, born in a stable because there wasn't any other place in all Bethlehem for Him to be born. No room in the inn. What a sad story that is when you think about it, and we have heard many sermons about the over housing of all the people who went to Bethlehem because of Caesar's tax census. But did you know there was another reason there was no room in the inn?

Picture a large square stone wall. Around the inside of this stone wall were places for travelers to sleep. The inside courtyard was where the animals were kept. There was no privacy of any kind, and at this time no space around the wall either.

God had a better idea for the birth of His child than an inn that afforded no privacy for Mary during the birth. You might also recall, if you know your Bible, that a woman who had a child had to be secluded from the rest of the village until the time of her cleansing.

Leviticus 12:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean.
3 And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.
4 And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled.
5 But if she bear a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her separation: and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying threescore and six days.
6 And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest:
7 Who shall offer it before the LORD, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.
8 And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean. (KJV)

Mary had to find a secluded place to have her child, not in a noisy inn without privacy.

As Christians we overlook this fact, and cause the innkeeper to be a bad person, when in fact, he knew the law. Joseph, was a man also who knew the law, and that Mary needed seclusion, so where did he find this seclusion?

Judea is a hilly country filled with caves. It would have been to one of those caves that Joseph would have guided his virgin bride so she could have her child in the privacy necessary to the birth.

What happened next is well-known to all Christians. God through a birthday party. He sent angels to announce His Son's birth to some shepherd's and told them where to find the Baby, theirs and our Messiah. Then God put a star in the sky so that magi from the east would be able to find them. Of course this trip, believed to be from Persia, would take a long time. When the magi found the Baby Jesus, He was already 2 years old and living in a house in Bethlehem.

We don't think of travel taking more than a few hours to get from one place to another. We have cars, trains, planes, and boats to take us where we want to go. But in that day and time, it took many days to travel from one place to another either on foot or by camel, horse, or donkey. There simply wasn't any other means of transportation - not even a bicycle.

God took care of His child from conception to birth, causing Him to be born in the best place possible - not in a noisy inn without privacy, but in the luxury of a cave where they could lay Him in a manger for a bed.

It was to this cave the shepherd's went and found their Messiah who would one day die for their sins, and would one day again find Himself laid in a cave for a tomb.

As Jesus was born in a cave, God sent angels to tell shepherds about His birth, the most lowly and unaccepted people of the country at that time, and He told the magi - men of wealth and importance about the birth of His Son. No matter who you are, whether poor or wealthy, all are welcome to the cave, all are welcome to come to the Savior for salvation and the ultimate gift eternal life. That is what God gave us that first Christmas day - He provided the world with salvation. Through Jesus birth God qualified all of us for eternal life - we only need to accept it.

Something to think about as you enjoy a very Merry Christmas.

Blessings
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight. I hope you are all blessed in this season of love and hope. I am!

What a glorious sight met my eyes when I walked out of work this morning. SNOW! Yes, glorious snow. If you know anything about me, you know I love winter and long for the first real snowfall of the year. Though they are saying everything will melt away by this afternoon, it was still a beautiful sight. I can only hope we get more before Sunday. What is Christmas without snow?

Well, yes, I do know the answer to that question. We don't need snow on the ground to worship Jesus and give God praise for His birth. He didn't come to earth promising us snow for Christmas, but salvation. He promised that if we accept Him as Savior and Lord He would drench us in His cleansing blood that purifies our hearts and lives better than any snowflake could ever do.

Snowflakes look nice, each one is unique, just like us. If we could compare ourselves to anything, it would be a snowflake, because just as each snowflake is different, so is each of us.

No, that's not why I love snowflakes and snow. If you live in a place that has never had snow, I feel sorry for you. You don't know what you're missing. I guarantee it is an experience like none other. Yes, it must be cold in order to have snow, and you have to bundle up until you can barely move to stay warm, but to feel the brush of soft flakes against your skin, to feel the cold that changes the world from blah to beautiful with one snowfall covering the world in a mantle of white is a most awesome sight.

You can look at pictures of snow laden trees, and snow as high as rooftops, but until you experience it, you will never understand the true beauty of winter. Even people who live in it, don't always see it's beauty. They see the shoveling, driving on slick highways and roads that haven't been properly plowed. They forget their childhood and the snowball fights, snow forts, sledding, snowmobiling, skiing, and all the other things you can do in winter.

So while this snowfall lays on the ground, I will rejoice in winter and all the fun it represents, drinking my hot chocolate and continuing my edit of Scarred.

While I dream of snowmen, icicles, sleigh rides, and manuscripts that need polishing and editing, you also

keep on writing
Merry Christmas
Valerie


 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I am totally fantastic!

I learned something today that just blew my mind away. In fact I'm still overwhelmed by the whole concept. You see, I'm on a journey - a journey to Bethlehem with Budroe and the Annual Advent Adventure. As much as I love Jesus, have studied His Word and even have the Bible Study Forum, I learned a basic never before thought of before - Jesus had/has a belly button. I'm just like Him. That is still a WOW concept for me.

Well, before today is over, I thought I would make my voice heard. Seventy years ago today, President Roosevelt said this date would live in infamy, and it has. Today, seventy years ago, the US was forced into World War II. It was the worst attack on US soil until September 11, 2001. On this date in history, we lost more than ships, we lost lives - souls - 2,402 according to Wikipedia.

According to Wikipedia, Japan intended to stop the US from interfering with their military actions. What it did was do more than interfere with them, Americans came out fighting. There is just something about tyranny that causes Americans to fight against it on any shore, and we will help our neighbors against tyranny on their shores as well.

In case you didn't know, I'm proud to be an American. I'm a Veteran and proud of it. I would serve again if given the opportunity. I believe in freedom for everyone.

Well that's all from this shore. You all have a good day/night and

Keep on writing
Valerie

 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am.

The holiday weekend draws to a close as everyone goes back to their normal routine and Cyber Monday starts today on the Internet. I hope you are all finding the gifts you want at the bargains you hope for.

It is also the near end of another NaNoWriMo, and though I did not participate this year, I have been working hard on a couple of novels. Scarred to get it ready for publication and Guns of War. I have posted the prologue in my portfolio at long last. This novel is far from finished yet, but I do seek good reviews and helpful comments. As the genre states it is Sci-fi and as such I would really find it beneficial to receive reviews from those of you who excel in science and science fiction. Any help is greatly appreciated. I hope you enjoy this first chapter - the prologue. I will be posting more chapters before the day grows very much older. I have 23 chapters finished, and am working on them before I complete the end which I hope to have finished soon.

Now a note to all those who love Harry Potter and have either read or seen all the books and movies. I finished watching the last movie last night - Deathly Hollows Part 2. I can only say I was disappointed with the end. I know my son wasn't, and I can't at this moment lay my finger on why I found it disappointing, but I did. I did enjoy the series, despite my Christian convictions. I had been persuaded never to watch or read the books because of their content, but contrary to the persuasion I was under, I took a dare from my son, and started to watch the movies and found them great entertainment. If I was an easily persuaded person as far as my Christian convictions are concerned I would never have watched it with all it's dark illusions. I know whom I serve, so therefore I could watch it for the entertainment value it has. I was just disappointed with the final movie. Maybe I need to watch it a second time to get a better look at it. I know sometimes movies improve with watching, which might be the case with this one.

Now on to what is most important, writing, so while I get back to Guns of War and posting more chapters, you also

Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing exceptionally well, I am.

Tomorrow in America we celebrate Thanksgiving. For a lot of people it means a day off of work, parades, football, and food. I hope that as you celebrate tomorrow, that you remember one other thing, to be thankful to God for all He has given you this year.

I give God thanks for my family, my health, my job, a home, transportation to my job by way of a new car provided earlier this year, my dog - Pip whose companionship cannot be measured by words, my church family, and my friends both physical and through the Internet. I feel like I know each of you personally when I see your name in my inbox. A smile lights my face and I know I've connected with a friend, whether it's on here, reading a review you posted about something I wrote, on Facebook, or the prayer group I am also part of. You are all precious to me, and I feel like I've known you all my life.

So tomorrow I wish you a very Happy Thanksgiving from my family to yours.

While you sit around your table with family and friends, take a moment to remember what you are thankful for. As you sit and watch the Packers/Lions game - rout for the Packers - I have no doubts. If you're a Lions fan, well I forgive you, rout for your team. For those of you who have the day off to watch parades and football, eat with family and friends, give a small prayer of thanks for me, yes, I'll be watching the parade and the ball game, but I will be working as well. The food comes on Friday for me when I will enjoy part three of a wonderful holiday.

For those of you not in the USA, I still wish you a wonderful day of thanksgiving for all that God has done for you in the past year.

Have a blessed and peaceful Thanksgiving and
Keep on writing
Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all today/tonight? I hope you are all doing very well. I am!

I want to wish everyone who has served or is serving in the US Military a very happy and well deserved Veteran's Day.

I had the privilege to serve my country during the Viet Nam War. My service was short lived, but my patriotism will never end. Of all the jobs I've had in the last 40 years, my service to my country is and always will be looked at as the most important job I ever held. I cannot look at the flag without tearing up. I listen to the stories of others who have and are serving and note their great devotion to their country, a devotion that cannot be denied.

There are some people who don't believe in serving this great country, and those same people will never understand what it means to dedicate their lives to something so much greater than they are. I know those people on sight. They are the ones who though standing for the National Anthem will not cover their heart with their hand, will look around, talk, and be generally disrespectful of what our military personnel are willing to give up so they can remain free and have the freedoms granted us by the Constitution of the United States of America. They are the first to criticize this great country, to make jokes, and laugh at those who willingly sign up to fight for their honor.

To all those heroes who served bravely and with honor or are currently serving, I give you my complete thanks.

God bless all of you.

Valerie
 

Hi All,

How are you all doing today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am!

Well, I had an interesting meal this week. I ate crow. With everything looking so fishy about this so-called bill, I decided to track it down right after I posted my last blog. What I found was a bill that is 4 years old, and is in collections.

I did the honorable thing. I called him to apologize, he wasn't in his office, so I did the next best thing, and the chicken's way out - I sent a letter of apology and the means to get the bill paid and keep it out of court - I hope.

So I ate crow - most delicious - NOT. Anyway, I haven't really heard, we played phone tag yesterday, whether this will stay out of court or not. I sincerely hope so. I've done all I can to see that it does.

In other news, I'm making headway with both Scarred and Guns of War. I still have to find my notes for the end of the book, I know they're here somewhere - last seen on this desk, but for some reason, they've been moved, and I don't know who moved them or why. If I moved them, I'd know where they are, but with two other people in this house that share this computer, they could be anywhere. In the meantime, I'm reading it to get the idea of how to proceed to the end. I can't just pick up where I left off, I haven't written on it for a couple months. I know I had come to a stalemate where I left off, which is why I needed to get some notes for the end, and now - well I have to find them.

So that's all there is today. I'm going to pull up a book and get busy, and while I do, you also

Keep on writing
Valerie

 

Hi All,

How are you all today, tonight. I hope you are all doing great. I am.

Well, this foolishness continues. I received the requested bill from the creditor in the mail over the weekend. I contacted said creditor and told him this bill is paid, he wouldn't listen and like any good person, notice I didn't say Christian, this call escalated to the point of a shouting match and I hung up on him.

The more I study this phony bill, the more fishy it becomes. Even fish couldn't swim in this pool of mud.

First, I went to the company website and they do not have the department listed in their directory.

Second, He lists two bills which are impossible to come from that hospital, well maybe not impossible, but for me they are - one is cardiac - I never had any cardiac services at that hospital, and two is the orthopaedic surgeries listed - 3 of them. I didn't have so much as 1 surgery - at least not ortho.

Three, there are no dates of service.

Four, all the account numbers are sequential. I checked out past bills with the hospital and clinic, and the account number is all the same, regardless of when you have services done.

Five - I never set foot in the clinic named for the services. All services were performed at the hospital, which also has a clinic on one wing of the hospital, and it carries the name of the hospital with clinic on the end. This does not have the hospital name as the service location.

6. Nor does it provide a service address. The clinic does exist in many locations in the city by that name, but I never went to any of the clinics, I only went to the hospital and the clinic located within.

As I said, this is so fishy, even the fish couldn't swim in this pool of mud.

On other news, NaNoWriMo has started. Is anyone participating? I'm not this year. My goal is to finish Guns of War this month, but I do look forward to hopefully join the challenge next year. To all of you who are participating

Happy Writing
Valerie
 

Hi all,

I see reading over the last two entries, I failed to give the news about the court action. I'm sure you can guess what happened by my blog entry just a few minutes ago. I lost. The judge wouldn't listen to or look at the evidence I have been paying the bill. He flat out told me that the hospital could send the payment to collections, even while it's being paid, which I didn't know they had done, and the agency could take me to court, which they did. I am liable for all court costs plus the bill.

When I entered the courtroom, I fully expected I was going against the hospital, not a collection agency. That was a bit of a surprise. It soon became apparent while I talked with the judge that it would not go my way. I felt like a deer caught in the headlights. I was stunned by what happened. I went home in shock, and angry. I didn't know what to do, and frankly, still don't. I can only hope the form I had to fill out will be in my favor, otherwise, I could lose a lot more than I want to think about.

So now you know the middle of the story. Time for me to get back to writing and you as well.

Valerie
 

Hi All,

How is everyone today/tonight? I hope you are all doing great. I am!

I am still on vacation, and other than the first two days, they've been good relaxing days. I have not yet gotten everything accomplished I intended too, but I have made great strides forward with Scarred. However, it's just as much a revision process as well as an editing one. I still find myself adding to the content, but in so doing I'm making it more rounded with the characters and personalities of each. I'm very satisfied with the results.

Today is also my daughter's birthday. She's 37 today. Hard to believe, but that's what the calendar says. Her daughter, Sabrina's birthday was last week. I took her shopping yesterday and also got Shiloh something for her birthday as well, so it won't be late as Sabrina's was. Better late than never.

Well, the court fiasco is over with. I received the financial disclosure form in the mail yesterday and it's on the mailbox waiting to go out. I just hope they can read between the lines and see I don't have anymore to give than what I've already been paying. I was really shocked to find the court system so unwilling to listen to what I had to say in my own defense, and that being - I was paying the bill, what I could afford, but it didn't matter.

Now I can only hope that my dreams aren't stalled because of this action, and I will still be able to come up with the money at tax time to get Scarred published.

I am really tired of people messing with my finances. I know what I have, and what I have available, and I'm doing my best with it. It's not like I'm wasting my money. I don't own a credit card, so it isn't cc debt, it's medical debt with all the stupid accidents I had over a two year period, and now it all comes back to haunt me, worse than any Halloween goblin.

So anyway, thanks for taking the time to read, just keep me in prayer, if you're a praying person, and

Keep on writing
Valerie