Saying goodby to a beloved friend.

Today was a hard day for our house. My husband had to make the very difficult decision to put our dog down. Our beloved Ruby was 13 years old. Maybe 14. We weren't really sure. She was a German Shepherd/Husky mix and she had arthritis really bad in her back hips. She was on the maximum dosage of pain medication, was on meds to help her incontinence. But she'd gotten to the point where she couldn't get up to go the bathroom anymore. She had a tendency to go wherever she was laying. This morning was supposed to be a routine visit to the vet's office. She needed shots. And my husband went in with questions and got answers he wasn't expecting.

Her name was officially Ruby Jewels. We called her "Her Highness", because what Ruby wanted, Ruby usually got. She was spoiled to death because we loved her dearly. We got her roughly ten, maybe eleven years ago from another family who, at the time, was moving into a small apartment and wouldn't be able to give her the big yard she needed. My husband. Bless his heart. He had the toughest role in this. He'll tell you he isn't fond of animals, but he went to look at a dog someone was giving away one day after work and came home that evening with a surprise. She was the most loving animal. She loved everybody. Well, except other dogs. She was all alpha. But she went up to everybody and had to say hello. She also loved to sniff. A Ruby "howdy do", as we called it, was her big nose in your crotch. lol

I know we did the right thing for her, but we're all heartbroken. She will be very missed.

Orchard Chicken Salad my way

Everybody probably has a recipe like this, but I've decided to share mine. This is my version of the chicken salad you find at Arby's and Subway these days. The one at Arby's is delicious but expensive, and I wasn't crazy about Subway's version. So I came up with my own version. Except for the package of chicken breast, all the measurements are approximate. I'm a bit like Rachel Ray--I tend to eyeball it.

*chunked cooked chicken breast (I used a 7 oz package of Tyson Premium Chunk White Chicken)
*Roughly 1/4 cup red grapes, halved lengthwise (I think I actually used maybe ten of them)
*Half an apple, cut up into small chunks (I used a Pacific Rose)
*1/4 - 1/2 cup mayo (I used the lower fat Olive Oil version).
*pepper to taste

I usually like to also put in walnuts, but left them out this time, as my oldest has taken a disliking to nuts lately and I knew he'd want some of this. I also put sliced cucumbers, shredded lettuce and pickles on my bread. Found out the hard way, however, that this doesn't do well on sliced bread. Does better in a pocket, or inside a wrap.

Yum!

Write what you love to read

Last week was The Wild Rose Press’ fifth anniversary, and they threw a party on the loops, for readers and writers alike. During the course of the week, questions were asked, for the fun of it, and to keep everybody talking. I had a lot of fun! Well, as an answer to one of the questions, someone brought up something I was told once a long time ago – write what you love to read. And that spurred me to start thinking, and I feel compelled to share what I learned in this exchange last week.

Write what you love to read. What does that mean exactly? I used to wonder. I mean, I know what I like, but does that mean everybody else is going to want to read that type of thing too? Of course not! So I have to admit this brought up many conflicting thoughts and emotions for me, things I’ve been struggling with lately. Every writer writes differently. It’s what makes it so wonderful. But I’m aware that certain genres are popular right now, none of which I write. Paranormal, for example, appears to be very popular these days. A question was asked around the loop, what genre do you love to read, and paranormal was 75% of the answers. People want fantasies. But I don’t write fantasies. At least not those kinds. My idea of a fantasy is a bit different.

So, of course that got the doubt demon in the back of my mind snarling like crazy, whispering in my ear, “nobody’s going to want that.”

We all have one of those, though he’ll manage to convince you that you’re the only one who sucks. The trick is, of course, to send that demon packing! But it’s not always so easy. For a while, I believed him. After all, I’ve got one book out so far, I’m only just starting out in my career, and I don’t write what appears to be popular. I don’t write rich Alpha men. I don’t write about ghosts or vampires or time travel or fallen angels (actually I have personal issues with fallen angel love stories, but that's neither here nor there). What I write seems boring compared to all of that. Can I really keep up? I really do worry that nobody’s going to want to read what I write. Though if I stop thinking about only me, I then realize that chances are, every single writer out there has this same exact fear, and I don’t feel so alone anymore. Which is part of it, isn’t it? Writing is a very solitary career choice. It's only in coming together that we realize how alone we're not.

But somebody on the loop said something else that soothed that fear, that put that demon back in his place. I swore in that moment, as I read those words, that I could hear my guardian angel whispering in my ear, “Told you to stop worrying about that.” I don’t recall this particular writer’s exact words, I can’t even remember who said it, but she said something along the lines of: "you like it. Chances are there are others out there just like you."

Those were magic words for me. It was like a validation that set me free. Which is silly now that I think about it, but, again, if I'm worried about it, so must others also be. I can't be the only one. Hence the need to share this particular lesson.

So I keep up the hope that there are others like me, who like more traditional stories. I want to read about people I might actually be able to meet. I want to read about the couple next door. And I hold out the hope that there are others out there like me who want them too.

So, back to my point. What does it really mean to write what you love to read? Exactly that. Write the book from your heart, from your soul. Open up that vein and pour it out onto the page. Make it something you read over not because you have to edit and polish, but because you love spending time with those characters. Because you read that line on the page and your pride swells and you think, “Yeah. I wrote that.” If it makes you cry when you write it, chances are it’ll make them cry when they read it.

So, if you're like me and the doubt demon is a little close to home sometimes, remind yourself that you're not alone and send him packing!