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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
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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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 The Duke and I Author: Julia Quinn Published by: Avon Books, 2000 Overall rating: 3 Stars PLOT: (3 Stars) Daphne Bridgerton is a young lady in Regency England. The ton dictates society’s norms and it’s her turn to traverse the rumors and innuendos of the season along with Lady Whistledown’s gossip column. Daphne is well liked, heck, she’s everyone friend, so when it comes to finding a potential mate, he’s got to be something special because ordinary won’t do. Simon Basset is young, handsome, and the new Duke of Hastings upon his father’s death, only Simon never cared much for his father. In fact, Simon’s father abandoned him as a young boy when he discovered Simon had a stutter. Simon vowed to be opposite of his father – never to fall in love, never to marry, and never have children. When Daphne and Simon meet, the incident is memorable for both. Friendship grows into attraction, but Daphne and Simon have opposite goals in life. Daphne wants to be married and have children. Simon doesn’t want any of marriage and children. When the couple is caught by Daphne’s brother in a compromised position, will a forced marriage bring happiness or misery? CATAYLIST: (3 Stars) I was shopping at Costco and found the book. I liked the blurb, but thought the cover was ‘off’ – and it was reading the cover that I discovered Netflix made a series out of the book. The actress on the cover was ‘Daphne’ – she totally captured the character. The actor on the cover seemed off for ‘Simon’ – oh, he was handsome, but as I read the book, and developed my own inner visual for Simon, I found the disconnect a bit disconcerting. Still, I was intrigued enough to buy the book and read it. THOUGHTS: (3.5 Stars) Daphne is easy to like. She’s honest, forthright, brave and knows her mind. Her family is easy to like, too – even Anthony, who can be a little rough, but it’s understandable why he is, and his love for his siblings always shines though. Simon is the more complicated character. He’s had a hard time of it, having to overcome a stutter and the abandonment of his father. Simon hides his background and challenges well in society, but when confronted with uncharacteristic emotions, he buckles down on what he knows – avoidance. Daphne brings out the best and worst in Simon as she challenges him to confront his complicated emotions. WHAT WORKS: (4 Stars) The banter is witty. The plot moves at a nice clip until a certain scene. The characters are appealing. WHAT DIDN’T WORK FOR ME (WHAT WAS ‘OFF’): (2 Stars) I don’t mind sexually graphic scenes. The romance genre varies from sweet to heavy charged graphic scenes. There are such scenes here in this novel. However, there’s a point in the novel where Daphne has sex with a drunk Simon and he’s barely aware of his surroundings. He’s in no condition to really give his consent to the encounter. That said, Simon’s been firm about his wishes – he does not wish to have children. The scene ends with the opportunity for Daphne to conceive and yet, it’s not something that Simon wanted. Simon’s character development is not fleshed out to the point in this novel, when this encounter happens, where he willingly consents to Daphne’s desires. For me, a romance reader, consent is a must. Not drunken consent, not implied consent, consent given willingly and freely. WHY 3 STARS: I liked the setting, the time period, and the escapism of the novel. I liked Daphne as a heroine. I appreciated the complicated character that Simon was, I just didn’t think the author took the time to develop the character to the point where he was in an emotional place to share Daphne’s desires when he has drunken sex with her. WILL I WATCH THE NETFLIX SERIES? Not at this time. I love a good escapism series and Bridgerton could very well be that, but I appreciate more the realism of the escapism then the reimagining of it. The series itself would stand much stronger on its own if it was its own world and not a reimagined world of the ton. |
 Happy 247th Birthday to the USA. Boy, that’s a lot of candles! It’s challenging birthday as well. Gas prices are up, Food prices are up. Home prices are up. And there are more controversial topics as well, but this 4th I wanted to strike a patriotic note. Yes, we live in challenging times and if we don’t stick up for the values the founding fathers fought for, we may loose some of those of those things that make America unique. That said, If you love this country, own it. Be proud. Fly your flag. Sing those songs – God Bless America! Be proud of the patriots who have fought in past wars and the patriots now who fight for freedom. Never forget what makes this country special and step up. Never be afraid to say “God Bless America.” Fun Facts: The 13 original colonies are: New Hampshire Massachusetts Connecticut Rhode Island New York New Jersey Pennsylvania Delware Maryland Virginia North Carolina South Carolina Georgia There were 2.5 million Americans in July 1776. 56 people signed the Declaration of Independence. The first 4th of July parade was in Bristol, Rhode Island in 1785. In 1941, the US Government declared the 4th of July a Federal holiday. In 1776 Dunlap printing printed 200 copies of the Declaration of Independence Only 26 remain. Blue Fireworks are the hardest to make because the balance in chemicals has to be just right. This Independence day is low-key for me. We’re heading out to Ventura to enjoy a picnic dinner before watching the fireworks at the college.  Past traditions including visit Catalina Island and watching the 4th of July golf cart parade and the USC Marching band. Baking a blueberry pie and decorating it like a flag has been something we’ve done before. Buying 4th of July flowers and flying the flag has been something we’ve done. We’ve visited Pismo Beach and Cayucos California because there’s nothing like fireworks over the coast. In 2021 we traveled to New Hampshire and had a warmhearted friends & family get together complete with BBQ and pie! How do you spend your 4th? From the Declaration of Independence: We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.--That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, --That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. References: https://wallethub.com/blog/4th-of-july-facts/22075 https://constitutioncenter.org/blog/10-fascinating-facts-about-the-declaration-o... https://www.archives.gov/founding-docs/declaration-transcript https://selecthealth.org/blog/2016/06/7-things-about-fireworks https://www.energy.gov/articles/5-facts-about-fireworks From my Summer 4th of July story, Arrow Through the Heart  BLURB: Summer vacation and the Fourth of July brings Ella to New Hampshire while participating in a tennis competition. Logan is an innkeeper's son who bumps into Ella and invites her for an ice cream. Attraction flares and they enjoy spending time together, but each has their own plans for their life. Then disaster strikes Ella. Can a summer attraction truly become a lasting relationship? EXCERPT: They finished their meal and he collected their trash. Glancing at his watch, he discovered it was eight-thirty. Logan frowned, knowing he had to leave. "Thank you again for everything. I had a nice day, despite finding my room trashed." The corners of Ella's lips tipped upward. God, that smile was like an arrow through his heart. "I had a nice day, too." He paused, looked away for a second, suddenly nervous, then back at Ella. "I'm busy tomorrow at the inn, but I plan on watching your meet." "You don't have to, if you're busy—" "I want to." He drew in a breath. "Maybe we can spend the evening together? Go for a boat ride? I'll show you some of the islands in the lake. We could have a picnic dinner and watch the sun set." "All right." Her voice was soft and low, and her emerald eyes sparkled in the subdued room light. He stood and walked over to the door. She followed him. His jaw tensed when he turned to look at her. He wanted to kiss her, but it was way too soon. "I'll see you tomorrow," she whispered. "Good night," he said. "Good night." BUY LINK: https://www.amazon.com/Arrow-Through-Heart-Stephanie-Burkhart-ebook/dp/B0C5ZWD28...   |
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