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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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| Yikes!! It's a been a busy Summer and I'm just getting my spike proteins in order over here. Okay, let's catch up! GARDENING The dog keeps knocking over my basil but finally, I managed to save half a pot and I have some nice sprouting basil. One summer squash made it and I roasted it up with some zucchini and ate it. hehe. But, eventually, the heat pretty sucked the plant dry and despite a lot of blooms, I only got 1 summer squash. I ate the cilantro and planted oregano but it's not sprouting. The Marigold plant looks like something vicious attacked the stalk, but it's still blooming. I planted some pumpkin seeds but their not hatching either. With winter looming, I might take the season off. My bonzai is coming along, but it is still small. WEIGHT I was so busy in New Hampshire on vacation, I lost 6 pounds. Still doing Weight Watchers, but I've pretty much even out. Need to crack down on my carbs. I've lowered them a bunch, but there is more work to be done. The spike proteins are still hefty at 202.9 tho. ROMANCE Christmas is Bayeux is now avail on Amazon unlimited for your Kindle! It was published 12 OCT. If you can swing over and support, it's much appreciated. The 2021 version is more "meatier" than the 2010 version. I'm not starting work on "A Polish Heart" and "Matchmaking Amusement." Both are shorts. SUMMER TIME I took my younger son, who is 14 back to the homeland, New Hampshire for summer vacation. Let me tell you, big difference from Commiefornia. The biggest difference is the mask. In CA we still wear masks indoors. In NH, masks are optional. No option in CA. We kept the vacation low key. We visited the mansions of Newport. My favorite is the Breakers, but they are all a marvel. We visited Canobie Lake Park, a local amusement park, took a boat ride out to the Isle of Shoals and visited with family. Joey enjoyed spending time in Karen's basement when I visited her for coffee. It was nice recharging the batteries. When we came back , it was back to work. I've been pretty much working, sleeping, trying to find free time to read. There's dishes and laundry and really, we don't get out much. Finally we took a "family" and last Saturday, 16 OCT we went to Pismo Beach to visit the Clam Festival. We taste tested the chowder and trolled the vendors. It was very low key. The coast was cool and Pismo is a quaint CA beach town. Don't want to get into politics too much here, but not much has changed in the way of the homeless problem. Just yesterday there was a big fire next to the 101. Homeless fires are up. Tents are all over. Just the other day "Gutter People of LA" posted a video of a homeless person taking a poo at a bus stop and I've got to think we are better than that. Why can't we build affordable "assisted" living facilities for the homeless that offer 3 hots and a cot, along with in house programs for mental illness issues and drug rehab? It's not enough to build shelter. There needs to be another layer to it. All the best to you. Peace out. |
| Hi all! It's been a while since I was able to pop in. Forgive. I've been a busy little Spooky Bee. I'll do a seperate post to catch you all up on my summer adventures, but with all these containers ships sitting off the coast of California, I thought I'd research American Made products. I want to get into buying more local, more American products. If you have a suggestion for a great American product let me know. I'm always looking for coffee and chocolate! haha. No, I'll take anything at this point. I realize I will still need to buy off of Amazon and at Costco (which I love!) but I'm trying to minimize my foot print there. Again, if you know of a great product, please drop me a line. Today's product is about Toilet Paper! Enjoy ************* PRODUCT: QUILTED NORTHERN What is it: Toilet Paper Where is it made: Ft. Edward, New York (1 location I can find) by United Steel Workers Union 4-2. Owned by: Georgia Pacific Address of Georgia Pacific: 133 Peachtree St. NE, Atlanta, GA 30303 Georgia Pacific is owned by Koch Industries. Koch is a privately held multinational conglomerate based in Wichita, Kansas. Follow the Money check: Info gleaned from https://www.followthemoney.org I like were they spend their money. Grants have been given to help fund public school robotics and reading programs, college scholarships, job training initiatives, equipment for local fire departments, conversation projects (Wisconsin’s Trees for Tomorrow) and educational programs for young, female and minority entrepreneurs. Grants have supported local chapters of charitable organizations including Habitat for Humanity, United Way and the Salvation Army. They have a program called “Acts of Comfort” The 10 Acts of Comfort (from their webpage:) Comfort Cases: Backpacks with comfort items for foster kids. A Friend of Mind: Offers free yoga and meditation services to youth to combat mental illness and eliminate mental health stigma. Bow Wows & Meows: Hospice nurse helps shelter animals get exposure and get adopted. Haute Healing Foundation: Giving makeovers to chronically ill, homeless and disadvantaged youth. Everyone On: Computers and Wi-Fi for families in need. Veggielution: Volunteers cultivate and grow crops which are then donated to the hungry. One Warm Coat: Provides free coats to any person in need (adults and children) through coat drives. (maybe my son can make a BSA service project out of this. We'll see) My Block, My Hood, My City: Introduces teenagers to places in their own city they’ve never seen or experienced—showing them that their block should not be a boundary. Education Through Music: Work with schools to implement music programs as part of the schools’ curriculum. Danny’s Farm: Special animals for special kids with autism.Danny's Farm | Petting Farm Serving the Los Angeles Area Danny's Farm serves Los Angeles’ most vulnerable populations by providing a Petting Farm and a variety of Animal... My thoughts: I’m looking to buy Made in America products and I’m glad I found Quilted Northern. The TP is soft enough for me. I’m glad to support. As to where they spend their money, I see they have the "Acts of Comfort" and I'm okay with where they spend their money politically. I recommend this product!! |
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