The Ending is in Sight!!

That’s right! Yesterday I woke up with the ending of my book playing around in my head.

Yes! Hallelujah!

Before I headed to the fitness center, I made sure to write it all down (because that brain of mine can be a cruel organ, you know?).

I tell you, though, I was beginning to worry. Okay, maybe not beginning. I was way past beginning. I was worrying! Of course, I do this every time. I’ve always come through in the past, so I don’t know why I didn’t think I wouldn’t this time. But then, I think that all the time, too.

Don’t try to understand that, you’ll just give yourself a headache! J

I see me writing THE END very soon. And I just can’t tell you how WONDERFUL that day will be. This is the longest I’ve ever written a first draft. The LONGEST! Made me wonder if I’d lost the touch. So glad I didn’t. It just got sidetracked there for awhile.

*****

I had a blast at Kings Island on Wednesday. Weather was great. Company was great. Crowds were low (they usually are on Wednesdays). Couldn’t ask for a better day.

Hubby didn’t want to ride all the roller coasters I wanted to, but he didn’t have a problem waiting, either, so I took advantage of his hospitality and finally rode one I’ve been wanting to ride since the ride opened: Firehawk. On this roller coaster you ride lying on your back for part and then hang staring at the ground for the other part. Oh, and this ride loops and twists. I think this was the first roller coaster I was actually afraid. I mean, there’s not THAT much holding me in the seat, and then to have ALL my weight (which I’m not a tiny person) on that restraint gave me a bit of a pause. Still, I survived and now I no longer have to wonder about that ride. I also don’t plan on riding it again.

Okay, maybe if I lost 50 pounds, I will. Haha! J

This Sunday the hubby and I will be going to our first, and most likely our only, concert of the year. I’ll let you know on Monday how Peter Frampton and Cheap Trick are. I hope they’re entertaining. Sometimes that doesn’t happen. Sometimes it’s amazing. The last time I was amazed was when we went to see Peter Noonan (of Herman Hermits). That man was crazy (in a fun, demented way).

So… What was the last concert you went to that left you amazed?

Have a great weekend!

Stacy

Wednesday Reads and Having Fun Today

I’m getting caught up in my reading AND getting closer to finishing my WIP. See, I can do both! Haha! Anyway, here’s what I read this week:

Jul 29: “Veronica Mars: Mr. Kiss and Tell” by Rob Thomas and Jennifer Graham, #2 in the series, a mystery at 330 pages long. Blurb from book: The Neptune Grand has always been the seasie town’s ritziest hotel, despite the shady dealings and high-profile scandalsthat follow its elite guests. When a woman claims that she was brutally assaulted in one of its rooms, then smuggled out and left for dead by a staff member, the owners know that they have a potential powder keg on their hands. They turn to Veronica to disprove the woman’s story. But the case is a convoluted mess. The accused employee is no longer in the country; the security footage shows the woman entering the hotel, but there is not evidence that she ever left; and the victim is someone from Veronica’s past whohas no good reason to trust her. As Veronica works to fill in the missing pieces, the one thing that becomes clear is that a dangerous predator is still on the loose…and that he’s one step away from striking again. This is a fun series mainly because I loved (LOVED) the television series. It’s so fun to get back into these characters. Yeah, they’re all ten years older, but they’re the same, too. I love reading these and look forward to more (I hope there are more!).

Aug 1: “A Buckhorn Summer”/”Back to Buckhorn” by Lori Foster, two contemporary romance novellas in one book at 235 pages long. Blurb for “A Buckhorn Summer” from book: Lisa Sommerville’s wild one-night stand was completely out of character for the workaholic businesswoman. So when she arrives in Buckhorn, Kentucky to spend a summer rethinking her career, she’s stunned to find that Gray Neely has stepped out of her steamy memories and taken up residence in her hometown. What’s more, the laid-back ex-cop wants to pick up where they left off. Lisa has been on Gray’s mind every day since that mind-blowing encounter. He was reeling from a tragedy in the line of duty, and their connection was instant and intense. Still is. But sleepy Buckhorn is a million miles from her corporate world. And he has one sweet, hot summer to prove they have a future there, together. Blurb for “Back to Buckhorn” from Goodreads: For odd-girl-out Zoey Hodge, the best thing about Buckhorn, Kentucky, was leaving it behind. And now she’s back—at least until she can nurse her mother back to health and hightail it out of there anew. But there’s one person she doesn’t mind seeing again. Garrett Hudson was one of the few who was always kind to her. Now he’s a firefighter—still one of the good guys, but with a sexy alpha charm that’s tempting her inner bad girl. In school, Zoey was smart, witty and unafraid to be herself. Garrett fell hard back then, and he’s falling even faster now. As far as he’s concerned, there are all kinds of reasons Zoey should stick around. Her pet grooming business. Her mom. And the chance for him to prove that he can be her real-life hero in every way that matters… Short, sexy romances with some hot, hot fellas! How can you NOT fall in love with them? It's hard, let me tell you. I really like Lori Foster and I bought this benefit book at the Reader Author Get Together where all the proceeds were donated to the Animal Adoption Foundation of Hamilton, Ohio. Double win—for me and the animals! J

I won’t be getting much reading OR writing done today. The hubby and I are going to go have some fun at Kings Island. He got free tickets and the weather looks to be fantastic!

I also see some blueberry ice cream in my future! Mmmmm.

So… Have you ever been to Kings Island? My first trip there was in 1984, before we ever thought about living in the area. I’ve always loved amusement parks (and roller coasters).

Happy Reading!

Stacy

Wednesday Reads

Edits for Ghostly Liaison are finished (for now), leaving me time to work on my other projects. You know, like writing something NEW (Ghostly Interlude). I'm still revising Blind Temptation, too, but I hope to be able to work on both projects. Oh, and continue reading. Gotta keep doing that. I’ve got LOTS of books to read! And here’s what I read during the week:

Jun 21: “Dead Heat” by Allison Brennan, the 8th book in the Lucy Kincaid series, a romantic(ish) suspense. Blurb from book: Assigned to San Antonio’s Violent Crimes unit, Lucy Kincaid joins a team of seasoned veterans and newer agents for a task force called Operation Heatwave. It’s supposed to be a simple sweep of known offenders with outstanding warrants. But when Lucy and her team try to bust two local brothers for jumping bail, she walks into a hotbed of pure evil. Their names are George and Jaime Sanchez. They are charged with murder, drug trafficking, and worse. And one of them is still out there. As Lucy races to capture Jaime Sanchez, more shocking evidence comes to light. The brothers have been using their basement as a holding cell for children they kidnapped for the cartels. When George agrees to turn on his brother, he is murdered behind bars. Now Lucy has no choice but to go outside the law. Enlisting the help of her boyfriend Sean Rogan and his mercenary brother Kane, she will risk her career—and both of their lives—to bring down a crime lord’s empire…before more innocent lives go up in flames. I really love this series and watching Lucy’s relationship with Sean grow. The suspense is top-notch, too (I had problems putting this book down). One of these days I’m going to go back and read the books that introduced these two characters (featuring a sibling—they both have a lot!). I want to know EVERYTHING! I gave this 5 stars on Goodreads.

Jun 22: “Ever Mine” by Eden Ashe, a romantic fantasy novella. Blurb from Goodreads: Can a kidnapped fairy and a human find love despite all odds? Nathan Alexander’s batty aunt has done it again. This time she’s sent him a rare plant he doesn’t want. Imagine his surprise when he finds a kidnapped fairy hidden within its leaves. As a man who heads a non-profit organization for abused women and children, Nathan makes it his mission to help her find her way home. All her life Katenia was warned about the evilness of humans. Never was that proved more true than when she was kidnapped from her quiet valley home. Thrust into the human world, Katenia must fight her very instincts to trust Nathan if she ever hopes to return to her rightful place…and to her normal thumb-sized fairy form. But with their lives in danger, finding home…and love…will be a journey worthy of a fairy tale. I read this story because I wanted to read something short, but found I would have loved for this to be longer and more involved. Still, if you’re looking for a sexy novella, and you like fairies, then this is your book. I thought it was a cute story and gave it 4 stars on Goodreads.

If the weather cooperates today, the husband and I might venture down to Kings Island. I don’t plan on taking my camera, so no pictures to torture you with. J I’d like to ride the new roller coaster, but seeing as how I didn’t ride last year’s new coaster (my husband wouldn’t go on it and I wouldn’t go alone), I’m kind of doubting I’ll be riding it. Do you go to amusement parks? What’s your favorite ride?

Happy reading!

Stacy

Even Old People Can Learn a Lesson or Two

On Thursday, my hubby and I went to Kings Island, specifically the water park. Temp was in the 80s and, with school in session most places, attendance was low. It really was the perfect day. However, we realized some things on this trip.

THINGS YOU SHOULDN'T DO AT THE WATER PARK

1. If you're going to keep the car keys on your person, make sure to put them in a baggie.

We saw the sign - $12.00 for a small locker. Gee whiz, give me a break. It wasn't all that long ago when it cost $5.00. We decided not to bother with the locker. Who would steal our towels anyway? My husband put the keys in his pocket and forgot about them. We hit the wave pool first.

2. If you have your keys in a baggie, make sure they won't fall out of your pocket.

After spending 20 minutes (or so) in the wave pool, we decided to go on some of the other "rides". That's when he discovered he forgot to put the keys in the baggie, which also contained his driver's license, credit card, and our park passes. Trying to minimize the water damage, he placed the keys with the other items. But now it wouldn't fit in the secure pocket inside his suit. He put them in the big side pocket.

3. If you own a convertible, do not put the spare keys in the trunk.

After our second ride, he discovered the baggie was missing. We checked both rides and no one found any baggie containing a set of keys. We went to lost and found. No luck there, either. We called security. They could get us inside our car (and to his cell phone), but since it's a convertible, we keep the lever to the trunk locked. Called AAA. They couldn't get it unlocked either. Had to tow the car to Toyota (thank goodness it was still open!), where they promptly created a trunk key. I was able to get my purse, and the spare key, so we could drive home. That only took three hours!

Not exactly our idea of fun. And to think, we could have saved ourselves a lot of work (i.e. cancelling the credit card, replacing the driver's license, changing the locks to the house, and most likely having to buy another car key) if we had only paid the $12.00. At least we know how secure our car is. Of course, after all that, no one bothered to ask for our ID once we got inside the trunk. We could have been anybody! Kind of scary, if you ask me.

My hubby feels bad, though. I feel I'm just as much to blame (I didn't want to pay the $12.00, either). But I am glad I wasn't the one who lost the keys. I do enough stupid stuff already!

Friday Mish Mash

I know it's not spring, but did we actually have one? I think we went straight from winter to summer. Or maybe that was from fall to summer. I forget. It's been a strange year. Anyway, I took this picture of my daffodils (and some of the weeds behind them) and thought I'd add some color to my post. Especially since I don't have a subject to write about!

I had thought of a great subject for my Friday post. Unfortunately, I did NOT write it down. When will I learn???

I went to see the Batman movie on Sunday (with husband and son) and then again on Tuesday (with daughter). I think I enjoyed it more the second time (I kind of understood what was going on then). It might have helped if I had watched the first two movies before seeing the third (I tend to forget stuff), but I still enjoyed the movie.

On Wednesday, the hubby and I went to Kings Island for the day. Of course, it was one hot stinker of a day, but Wednesdays are the least busiest days (at least according to my children, who had both worked there at one time or another). The first ride we rode was Diamondback. That's the newest roller coaster there and I had never been on it. Man, what a ride! I loved it. I'd go back just to ride that thing over and over!

Overall, we rode four rides, attended two shows, and strolled through the water park during our 4-1/2 hour stay. Needless to say, my feet hurt and I was hot by the time we made it back to our car. But I had a fun day (and my husband was glad he fit in the rides better this time!). We just might go back on another Wednesday. He has vacation to burn and I don't have a job (we bought the seasons passes last year, which includes free parking).

I love amusement parks. Always have. Grew up with Disneyland and Magic Mountain (before they were Six Flags). Now we live within an hour of Kings Island. Roller coasters have always been my favorite, too. What about you? Do you like amusement parks? Which part is your favorite?