What I’ve Learned in this Crazy Life

An article I wrote for my writer's group newsletter, but wanted to share!

I’ve been lucky enough to know a variety of different people in my adult years. As a somewhat sheltered small-town, Catholic school kid, the homogenous group that I knew didn’t really allow for much exploration in my world. Gradually my circles expanded to include a Brooklyn transplant who built casinos in Las Vegas, an older businessman from Michigan and myriad others from all across the world. Some I took on as mentors, others were just friendly acquaintances, but all of them taught me about life. Here are some things that stuck with me.

1. Keep your ego out of it. Things go so much more smoothly when you can look at things objectively and see that 99% of what happens to us isn’t personal. I struggled with this, but I’m getting better.

2. Do your job. This comes from the great New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick. Every day, as soon as we get up, we do our job. Everything will work smoothly if we do all that is required of us.

3. Stay focused. Keep your goals in mind and (#2) do your job and work to get to there.

4. Compete only with yourself. It does you no good to think that the other guy has something you don’t. Emulate those that are successful, but don’t think they’re better than you are. Take your accomplishments and better them.

5. Stay humble. One of my favorite quotes is ’Be humble or be humbled.’ That rise to the top can end with a spectacular fall and you’ll want someone at the bottom to be there to catch you. You won’t have one if you’re insufferable.

6. Stay kind. This goes right along with Stay Humble. None of us achieves success without others cheering us on. Give back to those who give to you.

7. Do your best. Do nothing half-heartedly. If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well. The lesson here is also to learn to say no. You cannot consistently do your best when you are stretched too thin.

8. Refuse to let drama into your life. People will bring it to your doorstep in buckets. It will eat away at your positive outlook and empty your creative stores. Keep it out and keep your eyes on your goal.

9. Be curious. Learn something new each day. Whether it is a new foreign word or some random fact, we continue to grow when we continue to learn.

Carpe Diem, writer friends!

100th post!

Good morning, folks! This is my 100th post here on the blog since 2009. Thank you all for taking a bit of time to read my random scribblings over the years! Onward we go...

While this is to be a short post, it is not insignificant. Over the next few weeks, I'd like to take some time to give back to the wonderful writers that I know and showcase their work. Their support of me has been great(sharing Facebook news, buying my work, being first-readers, offering opinions on my covers) Here is the first batch to get some thanks. Stop by their sites and check out all they have going on!

Christine DePetrillo and I met Rhode Island Romance Writers and I'm happy to say I've enjoyed everything that I've written by her! You can find information about her releases here

Blanche Marriott and I share a love of hummingbirds and woodchucks. When I read her Born To Bitch e-book, I discovered we also find the same types of people annoying. Read all about Blanche here

More to come next time...for post #101 :-)

The Final Post About WDW 2011 (At Last)

This winter has been exceptional in a couple of ways: 1) no snow to speak of and 2) I've been busy and out of this house every day. Today, I had an unexpected cancellation and decided to finally put up this post (written back in December). This is a good thing because the next trip will be here before we know it!

My last day in the parks dawned with gorgeous weather yet again. Our last day would be spent with morning through early afternoon plans at Magic Kingdom. We didn't realize there were Extra Magic Hours until we got on the monorail. One of the best perks of getting there early!
We wandered Main St. admiring all of the holiday decorations that had sprung up seemingly overnight. Crowds were very light and I was in the Christmas spirit by the time I reached the Castle.

We started in Tomorrowland at Buzz Lightyear and walked right on. Space Mountain was also a walk-on. This was my first time experiencing all of the improvements that had been introduced. The ride is bumpy and wild and the sound effects are incredible. Space Mountain and I are the same age and I'm glad to see this attraction still knows how to rock!
No trip to Tomorrowland is complete without seeing the Carousel of Progress and after that we rode TTA (is it still called that?) three times. We walked by the Castle back and threw our coin in the Wishing Well. Since we were pretty sure Snow White's Scary Adventure wouldn't be open the next time we would visit, we rode it one more time.
Haunted Mansion was next on the list and we rode four more times. For lunch, Mom and I split up. She chose Columbia Harbour House and I went over to Pecos Bill's. This is the first time I had dined alone in the parks. But honestly, it was enjoyable. I used the self-checkout kiosk to order my meal and used my Key to the Kingdom to use my food credit. Zipped right through! Great service!
After lunch, it was Big Thunder Mountain. Mom and I laughed that we must be the only people to ride a roller coaster five times after just having lunch! Then after a leisurely stroll to Adventureland we visited the Pirates, took a few pictures and settled down for our Dole Whips. This is the first time I'd had a Dole Whip (only took 20 trips!) and now it is a must-have treat.
We wandered Main St slowly, taking in the decorations and storefronts and then headed back to Pop Century.
After a brief rest, it was back to Epcot for our last night. We rode Spaceship Earth as usual and then went wild walking World Showcase, taking pictures and snacking on items at the Food Festival.
My food selections this night (I was on a dairy kick)
Escargots, Irish Cheese plate, Artisinal cheese sampler and pot stickers.
Running food total for the trip is at approximately $225 (I included breakfast the next day)
My wrapup thought for the trip: Having a car of our own saved time and made it much more enjoyable. Not using the buses made us feel as if we weren't even around people.
Next day, it was time for the long drive home. We left Pop at 9AM, made South of the Border by 430 PM, Virginia at 9PM, back in RI at 6 AM. Home in bed at 8AM.
And that folks is a wrap until the nest trip this Fall! ;-)

Happy Two Weeks Into 2012

Well, after much trouble logging into this blogspot account ( I was on some deranged loop that kept returning to the sign-on screen) I can finally post my New Year salutations. Sorry it's late, but it was written during the Patriots/Bills game on January 1. Carry on!
Happy New Year, friends! I wish each of you a great 2012 filled with health, success and prosperity.
I've got a bit going on in January. If you've spent any time in the last month looking at my blog, you'll have seen a few product reviews. I'm part of Influenster and have enjoyed trying new products for the holiday season. We'll see if I'm chosen for any more sampling in the coming months.
My photography has been doing well and I have placed first in two contests with two of my pictures. Very unexpected! I never thought I would be into photography as much as my writing, but I've found it to be another great outlet for my creativity.
I know I haven't mentioned my foray into self-publishing in the past, but back in October, I used a pen-name and sent some of my scribblings out into the real-world. My big conundrum now is whether or not to rework it a bit and publish under my own name. After all, most people know me under this name.
Our winter here has been unremarkable. We've had no measurable snow and really no cold days to speak of! I'm not complaining! On January 1, I saw people wearing flip flops and sweatshirts when we would normally have thick wool coats and boots on. Groundhog Day is just about two and half weeks away and I'm crossing my fingers that the big storms stay far, far away.
My nights this winter have been filled with lots of reading and I've been getting through two or three books a week. And you can count me in the masses of people who are hooked on Downton Abbey!
That's all the news that's fit to print from my little corner of the world.
How is everyone enjoying 2012 so far? I've been reading great news and accomplishments in the Facebook and Twittter feeds!
PS...Next blog: The wrap up (FINALLY) of my Disney trip :-)

Reviewing X Out

I admit that even as I have aged, my skin still has a tendency to be oily and break out on occasion. I'm always looking for something new to try and when my Influenster Holiday VoxBox had X Out in it, I rolled up my sleeves and tried it to see how it would work.
Before trying it I did some research by visiting the product website http://www.xout.com which is also the place to purchase the product.
What is great is that this is a one step product and NOT a 3 or 4 product regimen. This saves time and is great for those of us who travel frequently. It is formulated to wash and treat your skin to 'X-Out' breakouts. You will get enough product for 30 days of use and you will get a bonus moisturizer with purchase.
I used it sparingly at first to see how my skin would react and am pleased to say that it is not overdried.
I recommend this for ease of use!

Reviewing Montagne Jeunesse Strawberry Souffle Face Mask

What a treat to get to to try this product in my Influenster Holiday VoxBox! This was the first Montagne Jeunesse product that I've tried but will not be the last.
I was impressed that the company uses vegetarian-friendly ingredients and is free of parabens and not tested on animals.
The instructions say to RELAX when you use it and that is exactly what I did! The little packets are perfect. You get just the right amount to use and no waste. The scent was luscious and the smoothness of the product felt wonderful on my skin. It worked it's magic as I watched TV and read. After rinsing off the mask, my skin felt smooth and soothed. A real treat during the busy holiday season.
Start the year off right and pick some up at ULTA Beauty, Walgreen’s, Claire’s, Walmart, Kroger, CVS Pharmacies and other retailers. In addition to the Strawberry Souffle that I tried, some other scents are:
•Cucumber Peel Off
•Passion Peel Off
•Dead Sea Mud
•Fruit Smoothie
•Strawberry Souffle
•Chocolate Mud
A great addition to ANY beauty regimen!

The Disney Fix Part Three

My apologies for not having this post up last week. I had some issues logging in here on Blogger.
Let us proceed to the good stuff!
On Day Three, another glorious morning dawned with a bit of a chill in the air. As I wandered Pop Century with my coffee cup in hand, I took some shots of the new Art of Animation Resort across Hourglass Lake. These couple of shots were taken on November 2 2011 and show the progress up to that day.
Dad drove in to spend the day with us and he wanted to do something a little different than his normal time at Epcot. We chose to go to Hollywood Studios.
The Christmas decorations were already up at the Studios when we arrived and it was fun to see how quickly the switch from Halloween to Christmas had happened!
I so enjoyed the half day we spent at the Studios because almost everything we did was new to us. We rode the new and improved Star Tours twice, getting a different experience each time. The effects were incredible!
We finally got over to the One Man's Dream exhibit and this is being added to my must-do list for each trip. I got a little teary at the movie. I think it is required visiting for all Disney fans!
And last, we visited Toy Story Midway Mania. I had a blast! Dad and I sat together and competed, he won! What a great time!
Lunch was a fast trip to the Pop Century food court for Chicken Alfredo, one of their better offerings. After relaxing for a bit, we drove over to Epcot for Food and Wine goodness.
Our attractions this night at Epcot: Spaceship Earth, Reflections of China, Test Track and American Adventure.
I had some fun over in the China Pavilion in the display they had of replicas of the Terra Cotta Warriors. Also, just wandering through the store in the back gave me a couple of photo opportunities.

I also had my taken picture at Gary's Column, which all of you Intercot folks should know and love! :-) Sorry I'm sideways, Blogger seems to not let you edit your photos when they upload!
This was by far the best night for eating and drinking around the World Showcase. I paid cash for some of these items and they will not be included in the Free Dining Total at the end of the post.
We ate (OK...gorged on!) Escargots, Belgian Waffles(look at that picture...mmmm), Belgian Mussels, Kerrygold Cheese Selection, Linguica Plate and Pastel de Nata in Portugal and Belgian Chocolate truffles. Dad also treated me to the fine and yummy Mexican frozen margarita.
Total at end of Day Three for the Free Dining: @$125.

Next week...ALAS....the last day and the long drive back home......