Thirty days of thanks: Day 7

I'm thankful for the internet.

Scoff if you will, but the interwebs is truly a wonderful thing, I mean, after all, you wouldn't be able to read this, if not for the web, yes?

I also truly am thankful for the internet during the holiday season because I can avoid the mall and shop from my home. I loathe the mall.

Without the internet I would not have been able to enter the ABNA contest therefore would not have met all the wonderful writer I've become and stayed friends with the last five to six years.

There would never have been Facebook where I reconnected with friends from high school and junior high that I now see from time to time.

I can also stalk people without them knowing...check out their pictures, posts, try to find out where they live. Just kidding, but seriously, it's so easy to share photos and information with friends and family. No calling, no snail mail. I know some people think this detaches us from one another, but I still talk to people (sometimes, when I want and when they don't annoy the hell out of me), the internet just makes things more efficient.

So there you have it.  Without the internet I would be an inefficient, lonely recluse.

OMG It's November and I've not been Thankful ONCE!

Okay, in my usual cold, dead little heart I'm sure I have once, but usually I will blog about it (I think, don't I? Who knows at this point).

So today I will play catch up and blog about 6 things I am thankful for.

6. My health - Okay, maybe I'm tired all the time and maybe I'm batshit crazy, but I have all my limbs and they work properly. I can see and hear and speak. It is my job to keep this body healthy to the best of my ability.

5. My job - Here I mean my day job. I work for a law firm. I do most of their marketing, which includes their social networking, print ads, offline networking, website, blogging, etc, etc, etc. It never ends. I enjoy the work I do, I'm paid well, and we have added benefits at our job that I know other people don't get elsewhere. Plus, I work part time and can still pay my bills, and this still allows me the time to write and market my books.

4. My writing - Oh lord, where would I be without this. Those of you who have been reading my blog for some time know that I've been through some rough patches. I'm not shy about my experiences in life. I share them in the hopes maybe they can help someone else. During those times I've felt desolate and detached from the entire world, I had this. My writing has helped me grieve through losses, make my way through darkness, and give me an outlet when I've needed it.

I thought we were supposed to do the duck face.

3. My friends - These bitches. Some of these people know things worthy of blackmail and I hope they never use it against me. I have friends from high school, writing friends, work friends, friends I've reconnected with on Facebook from junior high, friends I've met through Facebook, I also include my siblings in this...it's cray cray...

My bestie

Work friends on a scavenger hunt.

Writing friends

My sisters and brother

Gae Polisner, awesome writing friend

My two besties

2. My parents - What these two have done for me...oy. I cannot even begin to explain. Let's just say, I owe them everything.

1. My daughters - Yeah, so maybe there is a toothbrush on my bannister and a pair of dirty socks in my car. Perhaps I have to clean up their dirty dishes on a daily basis, tell them to be quiet when I'm trying to sleep, and nag them to clean their rooms. But they're good kids. They stay out of trouble. The treat people with respect. They treat me with respect. They work at their grades and work hard at what they love, for one it's soccer, the other, music. Without them I would be lost. They are my light.

So, tell me...what are you thankful for?

Little bits of happy

Yesterday I blogged about crappy stuff. Yeah, I had a crappy day. But last night was bliss. Last night I went to my daughter's last regular season soccer game of her high school life. It was cold and a little drizzly. We had to be there early because it was senior night. The team gives all the senior girls flowers and they announce their future plans, where they want to go to school and the parents get to go down on the field with them...it's really cool. You can probably tell I look blissfully happy in the pic to the left (that's her dad, my ex on her other side).

This team they played was undefeated. When we'd played them before, we lost 1-0.

I'll tell you what, the refs weren't kind. They were calling us for every little thing, BAD calls. Some of them, we had no idea what the hell they were. Yet, the other team was knocking our girls around left and right, pushing them down from behind, elbowing them in the side, hitting them in the gut, and they got no calls whatsoever. 

Needless to say, they pulled ahead of us 1-0 just before the half.

You could tell our team was angry and frustrated, but it looked like they settled things down at half time. They were working better as a team, making better passes. They looked really good. At about the 70 minute mark, my daughter scored to tie it up.

The battled continued and it was a hard one. Bodies were flying all over the field, penalties were called, it was hard to score. The game was moving fast, as we wanted to beat the undefeated team and they wanted to keep their untarnished record. But at 80 minutes, right before the game ending whistle blew, my daughter dribbled the ball close the goal, bringing the goalie out just a bit, and took a shot. She made it bringing the score 2-1 as everyone ran off the field and the scoreboard went blank. 

It was like a movie and was the perfect end to a miserable day.

2013 Wilson High School senior girls soccer players

Curve balls, mistakes and soul sucking teens

Today is definitely a Monday. Yes a Monday.

In the last couple weeks I have had very dramatic ups and downs. I'm not talking speed bumps, I'm talking hills and valleys.  Steep climbs of elation and big drops of disappointments, annoyances, worry and facing things that are unknown.

The good: I've written quite a bit the last couple days and it's felt good.

The ugly: I realized I wasn't going to get my books in time for my release party (apparently there was an oversight on my part at Lightning Source, an approval I thought I'd done, which I hadn't) so I had to pay up the yin yang for expedited shipping.

The good: I went to the Seahawks game yesterday and it was a beautiful day and fun and I had a great time with family and friends.

The ugly: I have an issue with my car (totally  my stupid fault that I'm not going into) that's going to cost me money.

The good: My kids and I, aside from cleaning issues, are great.

The ugly: I was tagged by two teens in another state on Twitter, and when I jokingly said something about them making fun of an old lady, I mean, I am a teen writer, I thought I would try to engage. I was told to "fuck off" by one, then asked if I send nudes by the other. Um, dudes, you tagged me. Sooo, instead of dealing with that any more, I just blocked them.

The good: I finally got a decent amount of sleep last night, and I didn't even care
that I slept through the Walking Dead to get it.

The ugly: Relationships in my life, well, let's just say they're not easy.

My life is chaotic, I get that. Some of it I create, I know this. It's like I can't function without some amount of drama in my life, but some of this crap falls in my lap, unexpectedly.

I know I'm not mother of the year. I know I could be a better all around person. I have too many vices, my schedule is too busy, my house is cluttered, but I try the best I can and I volunteer my time and donate to charitable works. I try not to miss a soccer game or a music gig if I can help it and I always try to help my parents, family and friends out when they need me.

I guess I'm not really asking for anything in return, I already have much. I still have my parents. I have two healthy kids. I get along with my ex. People like my writing (I mean, some people hate it too but more people like it, so there's that). I have good friends, great family, clothes on my back, a roof over my head, a car to drive  (once I get my tire fixed).

I guess this is just one of my ranty venting blogs when I'm stressed out and you are my sounding board.

And those parent's of those boys on Twitter...they should have taught them better manners and to respect their elders. I mean, really...nude pictures...

F³A: Random Friday Thought Train

These are the thoughts I've had since waking up this morning...

•  Shit, I forgot to plug my phone in last night.
• OMG How can it be November?
• Can you have a book release party without books?
• That guy hasn't really given me a straight answer about my books.
• I need to order cookies.
• Will I be able to finish NaNoWriMo this year?
• I have a book gig tomorrow, I have a book gig tomorrow, I have a book gig tomorrow, please don't forget...
• Bookscan: WTF?
• I should have screen shotted that #74 in whatever the hell list my book was on.
• I should screen shot the thing where it says Never Eighteen is often purchased with Eleanor & Park and The Fault in Our Stars.
• I should read The Fault in Our Stars next.
• Not as many trick or treaters this year and why all the bananas?
• Too many full sized candy bars left. ugh.
• Yahoo WTF?
• I need to migrate everything to my new email account. Ugh.
• I need to mail stuff.
• People shouldn't have to work on Fridays. Every weekend should be a three day weekend. I think people would be way more productive. 
• I hate busy weekends.
• I'm tired.
• At least it's Friday.
  

There you have it .

So, what are you up to this weekend? Like I said, I have a book gig. I'm on a young adult panel at Northwest Bookfest tomorrow morning with fellow authors J. Anderson Coats, Kristin Halbrook and Cyndi Tefft. Right after that I'm headed to coach a soccer game. My teen girls team is 6-1. They rock!! Sunday I'm headed to the Seahawks game. GO HAWKS!!

Now for my Friday Scribbles...

Pandora Queue Song: Radioactive, Imagine Dragons. It was the iTunes Sessions version, so I went with an acoustic version.
 

Book of the Week: I haven't started a new book this week. So, um, I'm staring at my monstrous bookcase...hey, I know, since I mentioned John Green's The Fault in Our Stars, let's go with that. Now I'm debating...that or Insurgent to start this week...

Netflix of the Week: I've also watched nothing...my brother suggested Fringe, maybe I'll try that if I get bored this weekend.

Quote of the Week: “The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.” ~ Plutarch