Alien Affair

Today is another obscure holiday — Skyscraper Day! It’s a day to recognize the innovation and history of skyscraper buildings. Yeah, I’m not too excited about this one, but every day needs to be special, right?

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon Gift Card, comment below. Is there a city’s skyline you admire? Enjoy the puzzle! 

This picture makes no sense, but I have a task for you.

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, tell me a story about this picture. Taken any element in the picture, or all of them, and tell me what this picture is about. Have fun with it! Maybe use the fact that books are leading you somewhere (maybe, another world?), and tell me where you’re going.

For those of you in the U.S., Happy Labor Day! Enjoy the day off!

I hope you spend it with family, relaxing and grilling something yummy! I’m not sure we’re going to do anything elaborate. The SIL is working today, and the kids are likely just to enjoy Facetiming or gaming with friends. I can’t see my dd being eager to fire up the grill on her own. So instead, maybe I’ll make my special ravioli pasta and give her a break. Anyway, enjoy your day!

Open Contests

Be sure to check out these posts and enter to win the prizes that are still up for grabs:

1. I love Fridays! (Contest) — This one ends today! Win an Amazon gift card!
2. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: The Black Moon — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
3. Anna Taylor Sweringen/Michal Scott: Maria Fearing — Her Own Hope and Dream — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
4. Happy Dog Appreciation Day! (Contest) — This one ends soon! Win an Amazon gift card!
5. Gabbi Grey: Stories Finding New Homes (Contest) — Win FREE box sets of books!
6. Favorite Romances You’ve Watched Recently (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!
7. Saturday Puzzle-Contest: Cold Pool — Win an Amazon gift card!
8. August into September (Contest) — Win an Amazon gift card!

August

Work-related:

1. I completed two sets of edits and began work on one other author’s edits.
2. I read several Burn entries.

Health-related:

1. I continued with my immunotherapy. I underwent one Keytruda infusion this month. I also continued taking Lenvima at an every other day dosage due to side effects.
2. I had an appointment with my heart doctor, and all is well. I won’t see him again for a year.
3. I underwent an echocardiogram, with mostly normal results, so no worries there.
4. I underwent a PET scan. In all the places I was most worried about—anything around my abdomen—no growths were found. There was one sub-centimeter dot on a parotid lymph node beside my jaw. Just something to watch for now.

Happiness-related: 

1. I’m visited my sister for a small vacation at the beginning of the month! It was delightful staying with her and catching up!
2. I swam every day the weather cooperated! Unfortunately, rain and cooler weather hit during the last week of the month, and now the pool is too cool for me to swim.
3. I completed my participation in #the100dayproject. Here are a few small pieces I completed in August:

September

 

For work-related, I plan:

1. To finish reading the Burn submissions and announce the lineup for the next anthology in early September!
2. To finish writing Ignition! Again—no excuses! This will complete the Delta Fire series, my erotic firefighter stories. The book will be out by the end of the month!
3. To begin work on Built Like Mack, the next story in my We are Dead Horse series.
4. To complete working on the edits I have for one author and await the arrival of another project coming in September.

For health-related, I plan:

1. To continue to focus on recovery! Rest when I need to, and some light exercise. I have to figure out what, other than housework, I can add to my exercise plan since swim season is over.
2. To endure two immunotherapy sessions this month.

For happiness-related, I plan: 

1. To establish a new exercise regimen now that swim season is past and commit to it!
2. To create more art.

Contest

Comment on anything you’ve read in this post. Tell me what you’re doing to make yourself happier and healthier, or tell me what you plan to read in September…

Like I said, comment on anything for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!

Well, it happened sooner than I’d hoped.

This past week, I swam once. Then the rains came, day after day. We experienced very cloudy days, nights that slipped into the 60s, and days that didn’t climb out of the upper 70s. Yesterday, I checked the pool temperature, and it was 81 degrees. For me, that’s a temperature I call “gasp-worthy.” I checked the forecast for the next ten days, and we have several days that will climb into the upper 80s. However, if you own a pool, you know that warming it up takes longer than cooling it down. I might try to swim on one or two of those hotter days, picking the hottest point of the day to get into the pool, however uncomfortable it may be. But “Swim Season” is basically over, which makes me very, very sad.

For a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card, please suggest activities I can do around the house to replace my daily swims. Walking any distance is also something I struggle with due to diminished stamina while I’m on my immunotherapy meds.

I’m a big cinephile—someone who loves movies. My favorite genre is action-adventure with a touch of comedy. I also adore sci-fi, and not surprisingly, romance.

I was thinking about my favorite romance movies and trying to make a short list of my favorites, but it was too lengthy, so I narrowed it to ones I’ve watched recently and really enjoyed.

The Gorge

The Gorge had everything—action, a romance, and sci-fi. Plus, the chemistry between the two leads was off the charts.

The Mountain Between Us

A deadly journey and two strong protagonists. I should’ve just said, “Idris Elba,” and that would’ve been enough.

Anyone But You

Not on par with the previous two “romances,” but this one was very funny. Humor will win me over every time.

So, how about you? What’s on your list of romantic faves you’ve recenty discovered? Comment below for a chance to win a $5 Amazon gift card!