Beautiful Weekend. The weather has changed and the daytime temps are in the 70’s. The sun is messing with my camera so this photo looks like it was taken in the dark. It is about 8:30 am. You can see a couple walking their dog.
Last week’s photo
Tag: His Revenge
Stream of Consciousness Saturday – Prompt “Miss.”
Stream of Consciousness Saturday and Linda Hill is back from her trip to Japan. Since she is well rested and of sound mind she has dictated the prompt for this week is ‘miss.” Now here comes the good news. We can use it any way we want. If you would like to join in this fun, please visit Linda’s site to read more on how to behave. Here is the link http://lindaghill.com/2015/12/04/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-dec-515/
Miss by John W. Howell © 2015
“Excuse me, Miss.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“I am wondering how you find that book?”
“Oh, this book?”
“Yes, the one you are reading.”
“I have to say it is hit or miss on the plot.”
“Oh, really? I’ve heard a lot of good comments about it. What is the miss, Miss?”
“Miss? miss. You are a corker.”
“Excuse me, Miss? A corker.”
“You know a funny person.”
“Not really Miss. I’m quite plain.”
“Not from where I’m sitting. You look rather distinguished.”
“I’m blushing Miss. Can we get back to what you describe as the miss part of the story Miss?”
“Oh yes. You see the plot seems logical part of the time and illogical at other times.”
“I see. So you would not recommend it.”
“No, not really. It’s stuffy, and the dialog is convoluted.”
“I’ve never heard that before Miss.”
“Wait a minute. This picture on the back. It’s you. You wrote this book.”
“Yes. Jonathon Miss at your service.”
“Aw come on your last name isn’t Miss. It’s Jenkley.”
“Might as well be Junkly Miss.”
“Will you sign my book?”
Friday JohnKu – AKA – TGIF
Well, we have hit Friday again. This week it seems Friday came up and smacked me in the face. I didn’t have a lot of time to wish for it to arrive. I looked up and there it was. My favorite day. Last night I had a My GRL and His Revenge book signing and out of it came a delightful drink courtesy of my wife. She named it His Revenge since she mixed Sweet Revenge liqueur with lemon-lime soda. The liqueur is described on the label as “Wild Strawberry Sour Mash.” I think that just about describes the drink with the added value of 77 proof. The Revenge part comes the next day. Today’s JohnKu discusses the mystery of the morning after.
Morning by John W. Howell © 2015
Laughter and good times,
Accompanied by a sweet quaff. ..
Dawn is agony.
Thursday – A little Personal
I had the occasion yesterday to attend a Christmas party at my old company. (Yes I was invited) Well, it’s not my old company it is the company from which I retired, and it was nice to return. I remember when we threw a Christmas party, and some of the retirees would show up. I wondered at the time why they came. I thought when I saw them at the event, once retired who would want to return to the thousand points of pain ever again? At the time, I couldn’t imagine being in the same position yet here I was accepting an invitation to attend a Christmas party. The party was at the same company in which I had invested, sweat, nerves, and what I thought was sure to be years off my life.
Driving the two and one-half hours to San Antonio, (A crazy stunt in itself) I figured it out. I wanted to see the lovely people who were still there. It was those people who made the workday bearable and in some cases fun. In spite of the deadlines and boss craziness, these folks managed to keep a bright outlook and positive attitude. They were the ones to give a cheery “good morning” and take the time to ask how things were going. They were also the ones who could tell you had spent an all-nighter or were on the cusp of going postal. They seemed to know that your trials were in some ways also their trials since we all worked for the same company. A quick story or joke would lift some of the tension and make the day go better. They were the ones who brought donuts of breakfast tacos and the ones who were first in line to donate to remember a lost family member.
It came to me that those retirees of the past attended the party to touch briefly those who had shown kindness and charity when they needed it most. It could be they needed it then as well, and I hope each received what they were seeking. Me? I wanted to thank some of the folks for being so darned nice. I did just that and came away with the feeling that I would like to attend another one again sometime.
Wednesday Story Day – AKA Hump Day
Wednesday Story Day again. Last week we found out old mom is pretty good at moving money around the world. We also found out mom has a pretty good grasp on how to set up the explosives and extort ransom money. Let’s rush back and see what else she knows about mayhem.
“Here’s your drink Mrs. Wolfe.”
“Thank you, Ben. I didn’t know you knew how to make a martini.”
“Not much to it. A little gin and a whisper of vermouth.”
“Mmmm. You do have a touch.”
“Gosh. Thank you, Mrs. Wolfe.”
“You can call me Trudy Ben.”
“I’m not sure I would be comfortable doing that. Shouldn’t we get back to Alexis and your husband.”
“Oh, What’s the matter, Ben. You get nervous around real women?”
“Um. I’m really getting uncomfortable Mrs. Wolfe.”
“Call me Trudy you little shit. You need to learn to follow instructions. I don’t really care how comfortable you are. I’m running this show and we will do what I say. Now pour yourself a martini and come sit by me.”
“But Alexis─”
“But Alexis nothing. She’s a little girl. I like you and can show you things Alexis could never even imagine let alone share. Get that drink Ben. I’m not going to ask again.”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
“Yes, what?”
“Yes, Trudy.”
“Good boy. You won’t be sorry. Bring me another as well.”
Tuesday-Anything Possible Kreative Kue #53 by Keith Channing and a Reminder that His Revenge is on sale for $0.99
The reminder first
As a reminder beginning at 12:00 am PST (6:00 am GMT) on November 30th (Yesterday) until 12:00 pm PST (6:00 pm GMT) on December 1st (Today) His Revenge will be on sale for $0.99 in the US and £0.99 in the UK. This event is a thirty-six-hour sale for the US and UK markets and is in support of CYBER Monday. If you want to read His Revenge, for a limited time it is available for less than half of a Vente coffee at Starbucks. (And lasts longer)
Now to Creative Cakes # 53
As you may know, I have become enamored by the talent of Keith Channing. He has a weekly prompt named Creative Kue, which runs on Mondays. Here are the instructions from Keith for the prompt. “Using this photo as inspiration, write a short story, flash fiction, scene, poem; anything, really; and either put it (or a link to it) in a comment or email it to me at keithkreates@channing.fr before 6pm on Sunday (if you aren’t sure what the time is where I live, this link will tell you). If you post it on your blog or site, a link to this page would be appreciated.”
His advice. “Go on. You know you want to. Let your creativity and imagination soar. I shall display the entries, with links to your blog or website, next Monday.” Here are the photo and my interpretation.
July 14th by John W. Howell © 2015
“Hello there. Anyone here?”
“I don’t think there is anyone.”
“This is the right spot. I have the directions right here in my hand.”
“There are no people to serve us, though.”
“I can see that. Where do you suppose they went.”
“I don’t know, but I would say they are missing a real nice opportunity to sell some pies.”
“I know right? I dressed up in my Bastille Day soldier outfit just for the occasion.”
“Tell me. That outfit stinks by the way.”
“Aw come on. It’s festive.”
“Why choose a soldier outfit?”
“I didn’t want to be a peasant.”
“Well, that make sense. Not.”
“So do we just help ourselves to the pies?”
“I don’t know. That truck we passed looks like it delivered them. Of course the name is kind of funny.”
“What do you mean?”
“The lettering on the door says, Marcel Le Cordier.”
“So that means deliverer of pies right?”
“I wish you would learn to read. No, it doesn’t say that.”
“What does it say for heaven’s sake?”
“Le Cordier translates to The Tailpiece.”
“The tailpiece. What the hell does that mean?”
“I think it means we should avoid the pies.”
Rave Reviews Book Club Wants You – #RRBC
As you may know, I am a member of the Rave Reviews Book Club. What you may not know is the reason I joined and what the Club has meant to me. Let me clear these last points up.
I joined Rave Reviews Book Club to become associated with like-minded writers who were interested in promoting each other’s work. At the time, I looked at some organizations and had made the decision not to associate myself with them due to what I considered unusual quid pro quo requirements.
By quid pro quo, I’m referring to the practice of following each other if followed, reviewing each others books if reviewed and other scratch my back, and I’ll scratch yours kind of programs. At the time, these practices seemed a little shady to me and so I passed.
Then I had a chance to read a blog by an RRBC member and decided to visit the site. What I found was a whole new kind of club. This was a place where others supported each other with blog tours, twitter messages, and a management team interested in Indie author success. Well, I signed up and let me now quote some statistics.
- When I joined RRBC, I had about 600 Twitter followers. Today I have over 5,250 followers. I did not get these followers by an aggressive plan of following and then following back. These followers came to me because they saw I was promoting my fellow authors and would in all probability support them as well. There are over 400 members of RRBC and not all follow me so as you can see these are not just member followers.
- When I joined RRBC, my first book My GRL was resting near the bottom of the Amazon ranking pile. Each time the club got behind the book (Book of the Month, Spotlight Author) the rank shot up into the five figures and held there for several days.
- When I joined the club, I had twelve reviews for My GRL. Currently, My GRL has forty-four reviews that have come as a result of the publicity. Of the forty-four, nine are by club members. It can be said although all club members don’t review any individual book those that do, add substantially to the information new readers want to know before buying.
So why don’t you go to the Rave Reviews Book Club site and take a look at all the activities? You never know it may be something you want to join. (Full disclosure: I am a member of the Board of Governors, the Tweet Support Team, and host or co-host of four Radio broadcasts. YES I’m biased)
Ten Things Not to do Shopping for the Holidays and a Reminder His Revenge is on Sale
The reminder first.
As a reminder beginning at 12:00 am PST (6:00 am GMT) on November 30th (Today) until 12:00 pm PST (6:00 pm GMT) on December 1st His Revenge will be on sale for $0.99 in the US and £0.99 in the UK. This event is a thirty-six-hour sale for the US and UK markets and is in support of CYBER Monday. If you want to read His Revenge, for a limited time it is available for less than what you would pay for a hot dog at the gas station. (And better for you)
Ten Things Not to do While Shopping for the Holidays
The inspiration for this list is some years of watching the same kinds of mistakes made during this festive time.
10 While shopping for the holidays do not think other shoppers are out to get you. If you do, at best you will resemble someone who needs hospitalization. At worst, you may take retaliatory action on the city kickboxing champ who accidentally ran into you.. (Notice how he doesn’t use his hands to kick your butt.)
9 While shopping for the holidays, do not have a few drinks to ease the pain. If you do, at best you may give into a temptation and overspend. At worst, you will have the best time you’ll never recall except for the car full of stuff you still don’t know how it got there. (That ringing phone is the credit card company wanting to know if your card has been stolen.)
8 While shopping for the holidays, don’t go out without a list. If you do, at best you will forget some gifts. At worst, you will spend more than you thought and yet have a nagging feeling you forgot an important gift. (How did that office gift exchange go since you were empty-handed?)
7 While shopping for the holidays, do not leave the house without a travel plan. If you do, at best you will cover the stores in a pattern looking like the infinity symbol. At worst, you will need to use your GPS to finally figure out where you are and to locate the stores you have already passed. (You say you passed the gift shop twice but can’t figure out how to get back there?)
6 While shopping for the holidays, do not take the small children with you. If you do, at best you all will be frustrated doing exactly the opposite of what you want to do. At worst, you will start to deviate from your shopping plan and end up at the McDonald’s Playground trying to figure out what to tell everyone who will not get a gift this year. (That Big Mac and supersized order of fries are starting to look pretty good by now.)
5 While shopping for the holidays, do not think you are saving money by buying things on sale that you know are not perfect gifts. If you do, at best you can give gift receipts so the gift can be returned. At worst, you will get the perfect gift from the person you gave a less than a perfect present. (That is Murphy’s Law of scrimping on a gift for someone. It goes like this. The expense of the gift you receive is indirectly proportional to the cheapness of the gift you give. In other words the less you spend, the more someone else spends on you.)
4 While shopping for the holidays, do not think a gift card takes the place of an actual present. If you do, at best you will get your shopping done fast and early. At worst, you could spend more on the gift card than you would on a thoughtful gift. (The problem is the recipient knows the amount. Darn it)
3 While shopping for the holidays do not take gift suggestions from ads on tv. If you do, at best your present could represent an uninspired choice. At worst, the gift you give could be totally inappropriate. (Yeah, that Victoria Secret or Home Depot item should have stayed in the store.)
2 While shopping for the holidays do not wait until the last-minute to decide what gifts to buy. If you do, at best you will be running around not knowing what you had in mind. At worst, you will be faced with some difficult decisions given everything you wanted to buy is not available. (The net result is much more expensive than you had originally planned)
1 While shopping for the holidays do not avoid taking water and eating before the trips. If you do, at best you will be without energy and parched. At worst, you will finally be forced to take a break and will have to spend what could be an enormous amount for something to eat and drink. (Sure you could wait an hour for a fast food chicken sandwich but time is money right?)
Cyber Monday Sale on His Revenge – Kindle Version US $0.99 UK £0.99 #RRBC
One of the reasons I decided to self-publish was to be able to control my promotional events. I am therefore pleased to announce beginning at 12:00 am PST (6:00 am GMT) on November 30th (Tomorrow) until 12:00 pm PST (6:00 pm GMT) on December 1st His Revenge will be on sale for $0.99 in the US and £0.99 in the UK. This is a thirty-six-hour sales event for the US and UK markets and is in support of CYBER Monday.
If you want to read His Revenge, for a limited time it is available for less than what you would pay for a bag of sour cream and onion potato chips at the gas station. (And better for you)
Sunday – Fifty-Two Views of the Gulf
A bit of cool weather here on the South Texas Coast. The temps are in the fifties which means long pant weather. We have a little rain as well. As you can see the horizon is virtually invisible due to the rain clouds. The beach is almost deserted, and the tides are reaching the dunes again. All in all a good time to stay inside.
Last Week’s Photo
