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 |  Life, Adventure, Family, Writing what else is there? Random thoughts. |
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WELCOME TO: GEMINI RISING   UPDATED INTRO 28 MAY 2024: Just a little about me. I've been married for 32 years this past NOV and currently live in Southern California, but I grew up in New Hampshire. I've got 2 boys who are young adults. I work as a 911 dispatcher for LAPD. I enjoy my job a lot. Still. If you can believe that. I love to write. Thankfully both of my boys achieved Eagle Scout. My Scouting days are over and I'm back to focusing on my writing. I like to get out in nature, drink coffee and watch football. Here's a little bio about my zodiac. GEMINI: Gemini, the sign of the Twins, is dual-natured, elusive, complex and contradictory. On the one hand it produces the virtue of versatility, and on the other the vices of two-facedness and flightiness. The sign is linked with Mercury, the planet of childhood and youth, and its subjects tend to have the graces and faults of the young. When they are good, they are very attractive; when they are bad they are more the worse for being the charmers they are. Like children they are lively, and happy, if circumstances are right for them, or egocentric, imaginative and restless. Their good qualities are attractive and come easily to them. They are affectionate, courteous, kind, generous, and thoughtful towards the poor and suffering - provided none of the activities resulting from expressing these traits interferes too greatly with their own lives and comforts. Geminians can be successful in many walks of life though their general characteristics tend to make them unreliable. They are often skilled manipulators of language, in speech and writing, and may be: debaters, diplomats (though in politics they are more interested in theory than practice), orators, preachers (brilliant rather than profound), teachers, authors, poets, journalists, or lawyers. This is me. I am a Gemini. Pure, Raw, passionate. The NEW focus of this blog is to share my adventures, travels, random thoughts, book reviews, thoughts, opinions, and writing adventures from actual writing, writing/editing tips, marketing, research. I'll get there. BLOG ACCOMPLISHMENTS: SEPTEMBER 2024: I participated in the
![Merit Badge in Nonfiction
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Congrats on your Honorable Mention in Blog Week Birthday Bastion 2024](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/type-Nonfiction.gif) Big thanks to WakeUpAndLive~doingNaNo'24   for hosting the contest! OCTOBER 2024: I participated in the
![Merit Badge in Halloween
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Congratulations on completing the 13 Poetic Days of Halloween.](https://images.Writing.Com/imgs/writing.com/writers/badges/group-Halloween-2026567.gif) Big Thanks to Lyn's a Witchy Woman  for hosting the contest!Find me at: WEBSITE: http://www.stephanieburkhart.com FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/StephanieBurkhartAuthor GOOD READS: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4031660.Stephanie_Burkhart YOU TUBE CHANNEL: http://www.youtube.com/user/botrina?feature=mhee Previous GRATITIOUS Warning, that I decided to keep in case I post about something that might offend.  WARNING I intend to be open, honest, and forthright. No topic is off limits from religion to you name it, I'm going there. If you think you might be offended...back up now - this blog isn't for you. For those who "dare"  check out the "Gemini Rising..." 
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| June flew by! Seems like just yesterday it was my birthday and here I am at the end of month. Quite honesty, I'm just trying to get by and do the "next right thing." (Frozen II reference) SIDE NOTE: I have to say there were parts about Frozen II that I loved and parts that I weren't too thrilled about. One of my favorite parts is when Anna is alone in the cave and Olaf has "fallen apart." She's cold, shivering, and realizes that her world, her family, the people she loves, are gone. It's a dark moment and she has to look it in the face and find a way to deal with it. And she does. The song "The Next Right Thing" comes on. It made so much sense to me. When the world is a hot mess, all you can do is the next right thing. For me, in context of the world around me, the next right thing is wearing a mask, social distancing, be smart about where I go in public, no bars, or gyms... (finding a smart way to exercise without going to a gym). In a way, for me, it's living day-by-day, smartly. I have kids to care for, even though they're older, I still have to help them grow into young men who are kind yet have a good work ethic, who are moral people. I have a job to go to that's important. (answering 911).So for me, the next right thing is living day by day smartly. READ I have a couple of books to recommend: WHATEVER IT TOOK by Henry Langhere. Henry was a paratrooper in WWII. He's in his 90's now, but he writes about his experience as a paratrooper and what it was like to be a POV. The writing is easy to read, if anything there were parts I wished Henry would have wrote more about. I do appreciate him sharing his experiences and I think his story is one that will connect with readers. COUNTDOWN 1945 by Chris Wallace. This is book focuses on the Manhattan Project and how Truman came to the decision to use the atomic bomb. It looks at Truman, Oppehemier, Graves, Tibbets, and other historical figures as well as some "minor" characters like Ruth and Hideko and how the bomb changed everyone's lives. It's written in a countdown manner and it's easy to read. It was hard for me to put down as I enjoy history and I finished it pretty quickly. Both books I got at Costco. CURRENTLY READING The Great Influenza by John Barry. I find it fascinating as he looks at the roots/causes of the Spanish flu and the state of American medicine at the time of the outbreak. It's really a good read. Barry talks about how Welsh through his actions, helped American medicine take the next step in it's evolution. What the conditions were like when the Spanish flu started (most likely in Kansas on the farm and it was an animal to human transmission, similar in a way to COVID). It's slow reading for me because the author introduces the characters involved and paints detailed pictures of what practicing medicine was like, the birth of research hospitals, etc.. and I'm just to part where he's talking about the Army Surgeon General Gorgas and how he's preparing the troops for WWI. It's interesting enough that I'm going to finish it. I want to know what happens next, and I'm curious to find out how the world dealt with the pandemic at the time. NO SUMMER VACATION Thanks to COVID no summer vacation for me. I have no plans for 4th of July. We had plans to go to Catalina, but had to cancel due to LA County shutting down the beaches. Probably for the best, but of course, I'm naturally bummed as Catalina is one of my favorite places to relax. We'll see what July holds for us. According to the latest meme on Facebook it's aliens from space. Wish us luck. |
| Well, it's been a while and I thought I'd pop in. So much has changed since I last blogged in January. Aside from everyday life, (I discovered Broadway in Hollywood and went to see Frozen the musical 3 times!! It was awesome!) COVID and Protests happened. I've been able to read, which I enjoy, and reading helps to de-stress me. I was able to write a story for the Writer's Digest Annual Contest called "We Forgot," and entered it in the mainstream/liteary category, but more on the "life" stuff later. #1 COVID When the "Safer at Home" order hit in mid March it was a shock to the system. What does Mary Shelley say? ""Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change." (Bard's Hall Prompt for the May Contest) Shutting down non essential businesses, social distancing, wearing face masks and santizing was quick, sudden, and shocking. Our societal response ruined my son's senior year. He missed out on Prom, grad night, and graduation. Is he safe? Yes. I'm appreciative of that, but he can never get those experiences back and it breaks my heart. As a 911 dispatcher, I still had a job to go to. I made sure I washed my hands, social distanced, wore my mask and had plenty of hand sanitizer available. I tried to keep myself healthy and my co-workers. It breaks my heart so many people were out of work. I donated to my church's food drive to help out. COVID is still a worry so I keep up my healthy habits. I'm glad that we've flatten the curve and it's hopeful to see society open up again. Yesterday I was able to dine in at a local restaurant for my birthday and I was very grateful to go out and #1 enjoy a meal and #2 support a local business. To keep me sane, I did a lot of reading. I'm still reading which is good. I got The Great Influenza by John Barry to help educate myself about what it's like to live through a pandemic. I was able to get out and take a lot of walks at the local lake. We still have COVID worries, but I believe we'll get through it. COVID isn't pleasant and my heart breaks for those who have lost loved ones. To all - be safe. #2 PROTESTS/LOOTING/RIOTING Here in LA, the city has turned upside down with protests, looting and rioting. As I understand, the looting and rioting has tapered down, but there are protests. I fully support the right to protest and address the government with grievances. This is such a senstive topic, but #BlackLivesMatter. As a white woman, I will never understand depth of fear black people may have/feel when they step out of the house to go about their everyday lives. I had a very heartwarming discussion with a co-worker about fears, concerns, and worries. I grew up believing "all men (and women) are created equal" ALL and I've strived really hard to live by that. The color of one's skin has never mattered to me. We are equal. That's me on a personal level. On a societal level, we've failed and we need to do better. #BlackLivesMatter. Here's a parable by Jesus: He told them this parable. "Which of you men, if you had one hundred sheep, and lost one of them, wouldn't leave the ninety-nine in the wilderness, and go after the one that was lost, until he found it? When he has found it, he carries it on his shoulders, rejoicing. When he comes home, he calls together his friends, his family and his neighbors, saying to them, 'Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep which was lost!' I tell you that even so there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents, than over ninety-nine righteous people who need no repentance." — Luke 15:3-7 I'm hoping this is a message that connect with all about what the heart of the movement is about. Please, protest. Let's get the word out. Let's do better. Let's not loot or riot. You're harming the very community you want to educate and reform. Thanks for letting me vent. This will probably be it from me. I try not to be political in my social media because in this day and age, sadly, it's divisive, and I really don't want to go there and sew those seeds. Divisiveness breeds negative energy and that's mentally draining. I want to be positive and hopeful. I'll be back a bit later with some positivity that I've experienced over the past couple of months, like Frozen the Musical, The Last Dance, Some books I've read, my walking adventures, etc... Thanks for letting me share. Be safe. Steph    |
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