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 |   Getting to know me. |
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One of the goals I set for myself this year was to create a blog. There are a lot of reasons I wanted to do this. 1. I think a blog will encourage me to write more often. 2. I want people to get to know me better, and hopefully I'll know more about you from your comments. The grammar won't be perfect, but a blog is a more relaxed type of writing, I think. I want to share my, and Sir Trevor's, adventures and lots of other things too! |
 Thank you Whata SpoonStealer   for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces my blog cover! Sunday, October 6th No Prompt. It's another lazy Sunday. I'm recovering after yesterday's Christmas Shopping Spree. This the first time I can say I'm nearly done in November. Here's a hoot, at the Dollar Store I got a Christmas tablecloth, matching napkins, and I even got gift bags, tissue paper, wrapping paper, but no tape.  Anyway, I have three more gifts to buy and stocking stuffers and I'm done! I'd like to do the rest locally or online. The other three gifts I need to buy are for two friends and a toddler. Christmas has become commercialized in a big way. We try to keep it simple, a lot of crochet and knitting gets tucked into our gifts. The most important part is family coming together for a nice meal and visiting with each other.  Every now and then I come across a bit of  humor I just have to share with you.A little IT humor..... Tech support: What kind of computer do you have? Customer: A white one... Tech support: Click on the 'my computer' icon on to the left of the screen. Customer: Your left or my left? ************************ Customer: Hi, good afternoon, this is Martha, I can't print. Every time I try, it says ‘can't find printer. I've even lifted the printer and placed it in front of the monitor, but the computer still says he can't find it.. ************************* Customer: My keyboard is not working anymore. Tech support: Are you sure it's plugged into the computer? Customer: No. I can't get behind the computer. Tech support: Pick up your keyboard and walk 10 paces back. Customer: OK Tech support: Did the keyboard come with you? Customer: Yes Tech support: That means the keyboard is not plugged in. ************************* Customer: I can't get on the Internet. Tech support: Are you sure you used the right password? Customer: Yes, I'm sure. I saw my colleague do it. Tech support: Can you tell me what the password was? Customer: Five dots. ************************* Tech support: What anti-virus program do you use? Customer: Netscape. Tech support: That's not an anti-virus program. Customer: Oh, sorry... Internet Explorer.. ************************* Customer: I have a huge problem.A friend has placed a screen saver on my computer, but every time I move the mouse, it disappears. ************************* Tech support: How may I help you? Customer: I'm writing my first email. Tech support: OK, and what seems to be the problem? Customer: Well, I have the letter 'a' in the address, but how do I get the little circle around it? ************************* This one and the next are our personal favorites! A woman customer called the Canon help desk with a problem with her printer. Tech support: Are you running it under windows? Customer: 'No, my desk is next to the door, but that is a good point. The man sitting in the cubicle next to me is under a window, and his printer is working fine.' ************************ And last but not least! Tech support: 'Okay Bob, let's press the control and escape keys at the same time. That brings up a task list in the middle of the screen. Now type the letter 'P' to bring up the Program Manager.' Customer: I don't have a P. Tech support: On your keyboard, Bob. Customer: What do you mean? Tech support: 'P'.....on your keyboard, Bob. Customer: I'M NOT GOING TO DO THAT AGAIN.... THE REAL PROBLEM I SEE WITH THESE ACTUAL OCCURRENCES IS THAT THESE PEOPLE PROBABLY VOTE AND REPRODUCE..... YIKES... Keep Smiling! River  |
| Thank you Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces my blog cover! Sunday, October 23, 2016 No Prompt. When I started this blog my goal was to write every day. Now, it seems like the only time I have to blog is Sunday. Remember the photos of the beautiful Fall leaves in my last blog entry? Look What Happened!    The last photo shows uprooted tree.   Overnight, we went from beautiful leaves to snow! The wind and heavy wet snow stripped most of those gorgeous leaves off the trees. What else happened over the weekend? Friday, I got my hair cut which was long overdo. No, I'm not posting a selfie. Then packed my scrapbooking supplies for Saturday's big crop. Saturday, I got up at the crack of dawn to have a quiet cup of coffee before getting dressed. My daughter picked me up at 8:15 and we headed off to Tim Horton's to pick up our breakfast which we ate at the Crop Venue. Seven hours of scrapbooking with a break for lunch is quite a day! It was a fun day, though, catching up with friends and other scrappers. Today has been a quiet day hanging with Sir Trevor as I recuperate from yesterday. I managed to do one review and recorded the reviews that came in over the weekend at Review Perks. Then took a nap! I finished the antibiotics last night at bedtime so we'll see what happens next. Tomorrow on the To Do List will be cleaning the scrapbook closet. What a mess! So, one week ends and another begins! Each week has its own challenges, doesn't it? What challenges await you this week? That's all I have time for today. Keep Smiling, River |
| Thank you Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces my blog cover! DAY 1132: October 17, 2016 Prompt: The Hunter's Moon is the full moon in October. Write a story, poem, or something about October's Hunter's Moon. They tell me when the Hunter's Moon rose on Sunday, Oct. 16, it was large and beautiful. I wouldn't know because there was heavy cloud cover and pouring rain here. Back in the good old days, here in Quebec, the Hunter's Moon was a blessing to hunters for they could see well by its light. In modern times, hunters must be out of the woods before dark so the bright moonlight isn't much help to them. Busy day ahead, but wanted to share these photos, taken this fall, with you! This first photo is the view from the farm where my Irish ancestors settled. Looking down, you see The Oxbow in the beautiful St. Francis River.  The next photo was taken just outside of town and shows the leaves in all their glorious colours.  Keep Smiling, River |
| Thank you Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces my blog cover! October 16, 2016. No Prompt. This is a bit of a dreary Sunday. The falling rain and chilly breeze are causing our beautiful maple leaves to fall. I guess that's why the season is called fall.  I've had a productive day! Catching up on some reviews, updating The Review Perks Forum, and thinking about working on my email folder which has climbed back up to 219 messages. It's been a busy month! I am part of the Showcase Support Team and I've adopted Rebecca  As her Showcase Supporter, I'm proud of her accomplishments this month! We've been hard at work spiffing up her port, editing, and getting ready for visitors to come admire her port and review her work. (hint, hint)One bit of bad news. I'm on antibiotics again, started them Wednesday. I'm not feeling too sick and I'm hoping these new, stronger pills will clear things up! Halloween... or not I got a cool new signature for Halloween.  What do you think? Are you decorating for Halloween? I think I'll just have my Jack 'O Lantern out. It's electric, so no worries with messy candles.  Remember, If you don't decorate; they won't come!  I just might be an old meany and keep my lights off, this year!  I've had up to 250 little ghouls, per year, in the last few years. That's a lot of bags of candy! I still have some things to do, but thought I'd get you up to date on what I've been up to. Keep Smiling, River |
| Thank you Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces my blog cover! Day 1423 October 7,2016 Storm preparations are necessary, what do you do to.? Prepare! I have been watching the path of destruction Hurricane Matthew is leaving behind as he rips through populated areas. What can you do in that situation? I think the best plan would be to prepare to evacuate. The forecast here for the weekend is rain, rain, rain, and strong winds at times. We are too far inland for the hurricane to affect us any more than that. I'm always prepared with extra batteries,candles, bottled water, and I keep my tablet and cell phone charged at all times in case of a power outage. I've only had to evacuate once during the Ice Storm of 1998. Most of Quebec lost power for almost a month, there was no way to heat the apartments, do laundry, shower, or cook. Luckily, there were shelters with emergency generators. I stayed in a shelter for the entire month. Celebration Time!  In Canada Thanksgiving is officially celebrated on Monday. However, on Sunday we will be having our annual Thanksgiving supper and celebrating my grandson's birthday! It seems like yesterday he was a cuddly little baby. He will be 24 yrs old on his birthday! It's amazing how fast time goes by.We will be having the traditional turkey dinner with all the fixins and pie for dessert, plus birthday cake. Monday, a legal holiday, will be spent recovering and digesting. This is what I purchased with the gift certificate to Leger's Shop. I had to add on 500 GPs to the certificate, but it was well worth it. I didn't expect it to be so huge!  Should I be fortunate enough to be chosen Blogger of the week again, I'll just put the info under the star. Fall is my favourite season as I'm sure I've said many times since joining WdC. The leaves are magnificent this week and the geese are honking overhead as they head south. The beautiful birds that entertained me all summer have also gone south. Chickadees and Blue Jays have taken their place at the feeder. My friend Peanut is visiting every night enjoying the apple I put out and teasing as many sunflower seeds as possible out of the bird feeder. I expected Peanut to turn up sporting tiny nubs of future antlers on his forehead but, much to my amazement, it turns out Peanut is a female deer. Trinkets! Have you been hit by the trinket bug? I have created one and collected 95. Although it's fun, trinket hunting is addictive and distracting. I have spent more time on the newsfeed tracking down trinkets than I have blogging or reviewing! So, I'm retiring from the trinket hunt and returning to some serious work around the site. Well, maybe just 5 more to make it an even 100. Keep Smiling, River |
| DAY 1418. Sunday, October 2, 2016 No Prompt Happy Sunday! Sunday is an odd day, kind of like an interruption. The end of a week or the beginning of a new week? Christians and possibly other religions call Sunday a day of rest and a day to worship. I'm not sure how restful this day will be. At 3:00 am all 18 pounds of Sir Trevor leaped up on my bed landing smack in the middle of my stomach! Then he thought it would be amusing to nuzzle my neck. I finally gave up and made coffee. Once he succeeded in getting me up he wanted food! Not happening. I'm not rewarding his bad behavior. We really need to get serious about his diet.  Out to Supper! Last night I went out to supper! This is a sure sign that I'm feeling better and stronger it's been a long time since I've felt like going out. Although it is a small out of the way restaurant, Bon heure d'Italie serves the best spaghetti and garlic bread in the area. Unfortunately, there were people sitting at a table near us they didn't talk they yelled. It was like a competition to see who could yell loudest. I'd say the man won. They were annoying everyone in the restaurant. We left after our main meal and drove to Tim Horton's for dessert. The drive was beautiful with the maple trees showing off their fall colours, so many hues of orange and red. As we drove along the river the leaves reflecting in the water were breath taking.     So yeah, Sunday is a good day to reflect on the things that happened last week and plan for the upcoming week. I weeded out the 500 messages that were sitting in my inbox. I'm down to 100 that I want to keep and planning to put them in folders.I cleaned up my portfolio now it looks spiffy.  Two New MBs! ![Merit Badge in Newsfeed
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Thank you for participating in my newsfeed challenge. *^*Bigsmile*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Newsfeed.gif) for participating in Elle's newsfeed challenge. ![Merit Badge in Multicultural
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Congratulations on your 3rd Place Finish in the Short Story Category for [Link To Item #1254279] ! We appreciate an excellent representation of your nationality, and look forward to reading more in future rounds. Keep on writing! *^*Bigsmile*^*](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/general-Multicultural.gif) for my short story, Canada, Eh?, written for Project Write World. I finished third in the short story category. So far, nobody has reviewed Canada, Eh? since I edited it. So if you feel so inclined pop on over to my port and review it, please. I would appreciate some feedback.
“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.” ― Bruce Lee I will be doing some Newbie reviews for the Welcome Wagon. I'm excited to be adopting one of the Showcase Members and supporting her during the month of October. The Challenge looks interesting this month, all about Halloween. I might tackle that.The possibilities are endless. Even though I'm doing much better health wise I still plan not to take on too much. One day at a time. Enjoy your Sunday! River |
| Thank you Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces my blog cover! Blogging for DAY 1412. Monday, September 26, 2016 Prompt: "Write a thank you note to a friend who gave you onion and garlic-flavored chewing gum." Dear Friend, I'd like to thank you for your gift of onion and garlic-flavored chewing gum. It has worked wonders for my privacy I no longer have to beat the men off with a stick. As you know, there are always hoards of would be suitors swarming around me. I can't blame them my charms and magnetic personality draws them like a magnet, not to mention my beauty and the body God blessed me with.! This wonderful chewing gum has changed all that. One wiff of my breath and they're gone, some have even fainted at my feet! I am having a bit of a problem with acid relux, but it's a small price to pay. Thank you once again for this incredible gift. River Playing Catch up! Wow! Monday again, the start of a new week at WdC. I actually posted my goals at Weekly Goals for the first time in months! My number one goal is to weed out my email which is hopelessly out of control. I woke up this morning to 500 emails. It's nice to feel loved. I've weeded out a few and am now down to 392. My other big project is reviews. I have only done 3 reviews for September. Even I can't believe that! Even this blog is being neglected. I slept wonderfully well last night and woke up full of energy this morning I'm hoping to get something done here today.Speaking of the blog, what are the points about and how do you get them? I have zero points. I've noticed some members have hundreds so I'm quite curious. Can anyone tell me how that works? Pickled Beets for Breakfast? This morning I dug around in my fridge looking for something for breakfast. My eyes were drawn to the many bottles of pickled beets I was gifted with last week. An unconventional breakfast but that's what I decided to have. Later I Googled Beets and to my surprise it was a good choice . Here is a list of benefits: 1.Lower Your Blood Pressure Drinking beet juice may help to lower blood pressure in a matter of hours. One study found that drinking one glass of beet juice lowered systolic blood pressure by an average of 4-5 points.3 The benefit likely comes from the naturally occurring nitrates in beets, which are converted into nitric oxide in your body. Nitric oxide, in turn, helps to relax and dilate your blood vessels, improving blood flow and lowering blood pressure. 2.Boost Your Stamina If you need a boost to make it through your next workout, beet juice may again prove valuable. Those who drank beet juice prior to exercise were able to exercise for up to 16 percent longer. The benefit is thought to also be related to nitrates turning into nitric oxide, which may reduce the oxygen cost of low-intensity exercise as well as enhance tolerance to high-intensity exercise. 3.Fight Inflammation Beets are a unique source of betaine, a nutrient that helps protects cells, proteins, and enzymes from environmental stress. It's also known to help fight inflammation, protect internal organs, improve vascular risk factors, enhance performance, and likely help prevent numerous chronic diseases.5 As reported by the World's Healthiest Foods "[Betaine's]… presence in our diet has been associated with lower levels of several inflammatory markers, including C reactive protein, interleukin-6, and tumor necrosis factor alpha. As a group, the anti-inflammatory molecules found in beets may eventually be shown to provide cardiovascular benefits in large-scale human studies, as well as anti-inflammatory benefits for other body systems." 4.Anti-Cancer Properties The powerful phytonutrients that give beets their deep crimson color may help to ward off cancer. Research has shown that beetroot extract reduced multi-organ tumor formations in various animal models when administered in drinking water, for instance, while beetroot extract is also being studied for use in treating human pancreatic, breast, and prostate cancers.7 5.Rich in Valuable Nutrients and Fiber Beets are high in immune-boosting vitamin C, fiber, and essential minerals like potassium (essential for healthy nerve and muscle function) and manganese (which is good for your bones, liver, kidneys, and pancreas). Beets also contain the B vitamin folate, which helps reduce the risk of birth defects. 6.Detoxification Support The betalin pigments in beets support your body's Phase 2 detoxification process, which is when broken down toxins are bound to other molecules so they can be excreted from your body. Traditionally, beets are valued for their support in detoxification and helping to purify your blood and your liver. You can't go wrong with beets for breakfast! Not recommended more than 3 times a week though. That's all I have time for today. Keep Smiling, River |
| Thank you to Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces the cover of this blog.DAY 1407: September 21, 2016 September 21 is World Gratitude Day. Write something about gratitude. If you have a favorite quote about gratitude include that in your entry. Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude. Denis Waitley I like this quote. It's difficult to live by, though. Once, I tried to keep a Gratitude Journal and I found some days it was hard to find something to be grateful for . I'm grateful for my family and friends, of course, but you can't write that in a Gratitude Journal everyday. When I stop to think, I'm grateful for the advances in medicine and the team of doctors and nurses that make living with RA bearable. I read somewhere that “Paying it Forward” is a form of gratitude, and I try to do that by helping the Newbies here at WdC. I'm grateful for all the help I received as a Newbie and I want to pay it forward to the newbies joining us now. My handle says “River being quiet.” That has been so hard for me! I don't think I've even done any reviewing this month. I've had to really hold myself back. Being quiet has helped a lot with my recovrey, though and I'm feeling stronger every day. I think by October I'll be back to WdC full time. Now, there's something to be grateful for! I now have 414 emails to weed through. Just that, should keep me busy! The trick is to stop when I start feeling tired.Today, someone I care deeply about, is having surgery to remove a cancer under his eye. The thing looks like a big white spider with legs sticking out in all directions. Scary. He says it's more like an octopus. I worry because it's so close to his eye, on the lower eyelid. I pray there's no legs inside his eyelid attaching themselves to his eye. I'm waiting, not very patiently. To get some news about the surgery! This is a short blog entry today. I'm going to force myself to nap. Love to all my loyal fans for reading my blog. Keep Smiling, River |
| Thank you to Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces the cover of this blog.DAY 1401 September 15, 2016 Prompt: Write something that starts with a sneeze.... Achoo, Achoooo! No! No, no, no! This had better be allergies and not another cold. I haven't gone anywhere to catch a cold and I've been careful to avoid anyone who has one. I'm feeling so much better and a cold will surely lead to bronchitis, a sinus infection, or even pneumonia. I don't need this. But alas, school has started again and with it comes viruses and bacteria. Short of hanging a bag full of face masks and a note outside my door there is very little I can do to avoid catching something. Achoo! As my handle says, I'm being quiet. I haven't done any reviews, participated in the Challenge, or even wrote in my blog and I've taken a hiatus from Review Perks. I didn't want to do that and felt bad about leaving GeminiGem of House Lannister   to cope with the forum. Hopefully, I'll feel strong enough to return someday as her faithful assistant.Besides checking my email (which is now sitting at 472 messages) and reading my newsfeed now and then the only thing I've seriously worked on here at WDC is a short story entry for Team Canada in Project Write World. I've been working with eyestar~* on that. What a surprise! I've avoided working with someone else or in a team because I didn't think I'd like doing that, but working with her has been a pleasure and I'm so happy I did it. Now, I can sit back wearing my Team Canada Hoodie and wait to see how well the fruits of our labour are received. Being quiet is difficult for me! It's been a strange week or two trying to keep myself from over doing. After madly working on my fair entries to have them ready in time, I had to declare defeat. My entries didn't make it to the fair and neither did I. The first time in 23 years I missed it.Oh yeah, I won't be attending the Scrap-booking Crop this weekend either. On a brighter note I'm feeling better. The fever and infection are gone and my appetite has returned. Hanna ~ Be Kind 💕  I have even more jelly in my fridge! I'm being a good girl, though. I just have to take extra care and rest to be sure it doesn't come back this time.Thank you! Here is where I thank everyone for the MBs, c-Notes and countless messages from all the wonderful people here at WDC. They brightened my days and were much appreciated!  Reviewing As a Review Coach, I'd like to stress the importance of carefully reading how to review before you jump in there and start. Reviewing is a big deal on WDC. We have a "Invalid Item"  with links and Review Coaches to help out. Here is an item with good suggestions and advice. "Invalid Entry" We encourage our Newbies to review, but remember a basic review has at least 250 characters w/o WritingML.You also need to read reviewing contest rules carefully. Some contests require 250 characters w/o WritingML others want 1000 characters w/o WritingML. If you write a review consisting of 24 words for a contest, it will be automatically disqualified. If you just want to tell an author you like their work it would be better to send them a short email. Keep Smiling, River |
| Thank you to Whata SpoonStealer for the beautiful purple awardicon that graces the cover of this blog.DAY 1387 September 1, 2016 What is the rule you find the hardest to follow? It can be any type of rule. Tell me what it is and why. There are so many rules set by society that it's difficult to choose just one. I'm not a sheep and I don't like following any of these social 'rules'. How you dress,where you live, if you smoke, if you drink, and who your friends are to name a few. I'm a free spirit and I live the way I want to, if that makes me socially unacceptable, then so be it. Party Central 2016 Have you checked it out yet? There are so many activities to choose from it's incredible. I had a peek this morning and it made my head spin.  Then there is all the usual stuff we normally do each month! I hope you all get involved and have a blast. Remember to read all the rules carefully!Ribbons?    This evening I will be sitting on the couch crocheting as fast as possible! I still have two articles to finish up for the fair. Everything has to be finished, labeled, have sample bags attached, and be delivered to the fairgrounds on September 8th. I enjoy the fun and friendly competition but if I don't have at least three things finished over the winter I'm not going to enter next year! I always try to get started early in the Fall or Winter, but something always turns up! Usually with my health.   Digger  Have I mentioned my lizard, Digger? I've had him for many years. He's a friendly little guy. Sunday Night, an ant got in his enclosure. The ant climbed up his stones and cave and crawled around on his floor. I could tell Digger was getting a tad annoyed, then the stupid ant crawled over Digger's back. Big Mistake! Digger waited until the ant crawled down over his head and then he quickly snapped him up in his mouth and that ant was history. So, it looks like I have some busy days ahead.  Keep Smiling, River |
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Bet Sir Trevor is having a ball. I gave my Luke some tissue paper and it was a real mess but worth a couple hours peace 
