Life in progress

Category Archives: Blogs


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One-Liner Wednesday – Smart Dog, Scaredy Cat

As a tribute to Dan Antion, our outgoing-badge designer and guy who can’t write a one-liner to save his life, my own One-Liner Wednesday is going to go a bit long.

I was sitting on the couch tonight, minding my own business, when Winston started to whine. I looked up and saw him sitting in the middle of the floor looking down at nothing.

“What is it?” I asked him.

He gave me a pained look as if to say, If I could talk, I wouldn’t be sitting here crying.

So I went over to see what he was whining at. There was still nothing.

I asked him again, “What is it?”

And that’s when he pointed to something with his nose. I bent down to get a closer look, and low and behold there was an ant. It was a fair-sized one, and it was still very much alive.

I praised Winston for letting me know we had a bug in the house, and I went to get a tissue to scoop it up and get rid of it.

Why he didn’t just step on it or eat it I have no idea. But he did tell me about it.

Good dog, Winston!

Winston, my pointer-outer/smart dog/scaredy cat.

Cheers to Dan for his lovely badge! We’ll miss it! Thank you, Mr. Antion!

#1linerWeds badge by Dan Antion

 

If you would like to participate in this prompt, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a pingback, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a pingback from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!


by 25 Comments

One-Liner Wednesday – Time for a New Badge!

Well, it’s that time of year again. Out with the old (but very well-loved!) and in with the new. Badge, that is.

And we have loved Dan Antion’s badge, haven’t we?

#1linerWeds badge by Dan Antion

Yes, we certainly have. Thank you one last time, Dan, for your lovely handiwork. ❤ Tomorrow will be our last One-Liner Wednesday with Dan’s badge.

For sure I am sad,

but there’s excitement to be had.

Because it’s time for a contest!! Would you like your badge to be shared every week for the next year by bloggers far and wide? Great! All you have to do is design it by Sunday night!

And hey, perhaps Dan will enter the contest again this year! It’s open to anyone with a blog.

Here are the guidelines for entry into the contest:

1. The design can be anything you want it to be, but it must include “One-Liner Wednesday” and your name and/or the name of your website.

2. Any pictures (art or photo) must be your own.

3. When you’re happy with your badge and you’re ready to share it, write a blog post on your own website and link back HERE in the comments, so voters can check it out. The deadline to do this is Sunday, May 20th, 11:59pm EST. All links included here by that time will be added to a poll.

4. All entries will be shared here on my blog on Monday, May 21st, 2018, along with the poll that will close the next day, Tuesday the 22nd.

5. The winner’s badge will be available for anyone who participates in One-Liner Wednesday to post permanently on their website as a widget and/or to embed in their weekly One-Liner Wednesday post.

6. One entry per person. The contest is open to anyone with an active blog, WordPress or otherwise (see #3 for entry requirements).

7, Poll results will not be available while the poll is open. If there is a tie, I will choose the winner myself.*

8. If I’ve missed anything, or if you have any questions, please ask in the comment section below.

9. Have fun!

So that’s it. Get out your paintbrushes and coloured pencils, your cameras, or whatever you generally art with and art away!

*I retain the right to refuse any badge that is distasteful, regardless of the number of votes it receives.


by 15 Comments

#SoCS – Smoothie

I have an earworm. The song “Smooth” by Santana and Rob Thomas came on the radio yesterday, and I haven’t been able to get it out of my head. My neighbours might have it in their heads too, since I had it turned up when I pulled into the driveway.  It’s so random how some songs get stuck in my head and others are just meh. Whatever.

So summer’s coming, and that means it’s going to be time once again to be tempted by smoothies. The ones at Tim Horton’s with yogurt in them are sinfully delicious. I’d probably consume far more of them if they didn’t give me brain freeze. You know that feeling, right? When the cold goes through your soft palate and takes a grip on your grey matter like it’s being squeezed by a terrifying version of a snowman? Like the one in that movie with Michael Keaton … Jack Frost. Yeah, that’s the one. Scary. Zombie snowmen who hide in smoothies and eat brains. Wow, stream of consciousness … If I start adding food colouring and yummy fruity flavours to my snowmen next year, get me the hell out of there, would you?

Yeah, I’ll stick to Tim’s coffee from now on. Thanks.

I’ve totally forgotten the prompt at this point. Ah well. Or should I say baa humbug?

This off-topic, almost-entirely sidelined post is brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Check it out, and gobble up some of the fun at the following link! https://lindaghill.com/2018/05/11/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-may-12-18/


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The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS May 12/18

It’s Friday! And that means it’s time for your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt! Ahhh!!! I thought I’d have a little bit of extra fun with SoCS this week. Extra, because it’s always fun!! Here’s your prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “on the farm.” Find a word that has a farm animal sound in it, i.e. sMOOth, and use it in your post. Bonus points if you include three or more. Have extra fun!

After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here at this week’s prompt page and check to make sure it’s here in the comments so others can find it and see your awesome Stream of Consciousness post. Anyone can join in!

To make your post more visible, use our new SoCS badge! Just paste it in your Saturday post so people browsing the reader will immediately know your post is stream of consciousness and/or pin it as a widget to your site to show you’re a participant. Wear it with pride!!

 

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours.  Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!


by 29 Comments

One-Liner Wednesday – Ink

It occurred to me the other day that the biggest leap of faith for an editor has to be getting a tattoo.

I hart MOM

If you would like to participate in this prompt, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a pingback, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a pingback from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

#1linerWeds badge by Dan Antion


by 25 Comments

#SoCS – Whoa!

Okay, bear with me. I’m going to tell you what I was thinking about the other day. It was one of those “whoa!!” moments you get, you know? Like when something comes into your head that’s so mind-blowing, you have to think back and try to remember if you’ve just smoked a joint? (For the record, I haven’t, in, like, many many years.) (Too many years to count.) (Like, really, a long time ago.) (I love stream of consciousness writing because it’s like you can’t take it back. It’s just … there.) (Like, whoa.) (Time to go back and see where I was heading with this. Just a sec.)

Oh yeah. The other day. So I was sitting in front of the computer, naturally, and I was reading, and it occurred to me that I was reading.

That’s it! That was my “whoa!!” moment. I was reading!! My eyes were deciphering these lines and squiggles on the screen and making sense of them instantaneously!! I was learning something at the rate it took my eyes to scan from one side of the page to the next. Isn’t that amazing!?!? How fast our brains are to not only recognize letters, but see them in an order that makes words make sense to us?!? It’s crazy, man!!

And now? What’s even better? My fingers are putting these letters on the screen as fast as I can think words (and spell them correctly) so that I can convey to you, (you readers!!) what I was thinking the other day.

It’s, like, WHOA!!

This totally, completely stream of consciousness post that I’m almost afraid to read before I publish because I’m not allowed to edit it (my rules) and I’ll probably delete if I do read it, is brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Read (whoa) the rules at the following link and join in! https://lindaghill.com/2018/05/04/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-may-5-18/

P.S. This post was written under the influence of pasta. No drugs (except caffeine) were consumed prior to the typing (whoa) of the above words. But I may open a bottle of wine now …


by 62 Comments

The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS May 5/18

Hey there! It’s Friday again and time now for your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Sorry I’m a bit late. I’ve been busy this morning. learning how Rafflecopter works for an upcoming giveaway. Stay tuned! Here’s your prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is “letter.” Use it in your post or theme your post on any meaning of the word “letter.” Enjoy!

After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here at this week’s prompt page and check to make sure it’s here in the comments so others can find it and see your awesome Stream of Consciousness post. Anyone can join in!

To make your post more visible, use our new SoCS badge! Just paste it in your Saturday post so people browsing the reader will immediately know your post is stream of consciousness and/or pin it as a widget to your site to show you’re a participant. Wear it with pride!!

 

Here are the rules:

1. Your post must be stream of consciousness writing, meaning no editing, (typos can be fixed) and minimal planning on what you’re going to write.

2. Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be. One sentence – one thousand words. Fact, fiction, poetry – it doesn’t matter. Just let the words carry you along until you’re ready to stop.

3. There will be a prompt every week. I will post the prompt here on my blog on Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a subject. For instance, I will not say “Write about dogs”; the prompt will be more like, “Make your first sentence a question,” “Begin with the word ‘The’,” or simply a single word to get your started.

4. Ping back! It’s important, so that I and other people can come and read your post! For example, in your post you can write “This post is part of SoCS:” and then copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into yours.  Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

5. Read at least one other person’s blog who has linked back their post. Even better, read everyone’s! If you’re the first person to link back, you can check back later, or go to the previous week, by following my category, “Stream of Consciousness Saturday,” which you’ll find right below the “Like” button on my post.

6. Copy and paste the rules (if you’d like to) in your post. The more people who join in, the more new bloggers you’ll meet and the bigger your community will get!

7. As a suggestion, tag your post “SoCS” and/or “#SoCS” for more exposure and more views.

8. Have fun!


by 49 Comments

One-Liner Wednesday – Confession Time

Sometimes I tell my kids I’m going to get changed just so I can go into my room, shut the door, and lay down for five minutes. They never notice when I come out wearing the same clothes. Shhhhh!!!

Winston knows.

If you would like to participate in this prompt, feel free to use the “One-Liner Wednesday” title in your post, and if you do, you can ping back here to help your blog get more exposure. To execute a pingback, just copy the URL in the address bar on this post, and paste it somewhere in the body of your post. Your link will show up in the comments below. Please ensure that the One-Liner Wednesday you’re pinging back to is this week’s! Otherwise, no one will likely see it but me.

NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, like Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

As with Stream of Consciousness Saturday (SoCS), if you see a pingback from someone else in my comment section, click and have a read. It’s bound to be short and sweet.

Unlike SoCS, this is not a prompt so there’s no need to stick to the same “theme.”

The rules that I’ve made for myself (but don’t always follow) for “One-Liner Wednesday” are:

1. Make it one sentence.

2. Try to make it either funny or inspirational.

3. Use our unique tag #1linerWeds.

4. Add our very cool badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

#1linerWeds badge by Dan Antion

 


by 9 Comments

My #BlogTour has begun!

Hosted by the lovely Anne Cater, my blog tour kicked off yesterday with a somewhat rough beginning. The first blogger on the tour, whose name happens to be Linda, didn’t review The Magician’s Curse because, I’m assuming, she wasn’t enjoying it. Which is fair–not everyone will. Yet she was kind enough to stick to her promise and promote it with a spotlight anyway. You can find her blog post here. Thank you, Linda!

Then today, the blogger who was supposed to review my book disappeared! I swear it had nothing to do with the magic in my book. Stephen Dagmar simply wouldn’t play that sort of a trick. However, another kind soul who is associated with Anne picked up the spot and promoted my book. Her name is Ali, and you can find her blog here. Thanks so much, Ali!

Which brings us to tomorrow; I’m almost afraid to say there will be a review of my book. Is Mercury in retrograde by any chance?

Please stop by and see what happens!

Oh, and by the way, The Magician’s Curse is on sale. From now until the end of my blog tour on May 9th, you can pick up the e-book for a special low price of 99¢ at Amazon US, Amazon Canada, Amazon UK, Amazon Australia, and Kobo.

Enjoy!


by 16 Comments

The Escapist Coloring Club Prompt – May 1, 2018

Welcome once again to The Escapist Coloring Club prompt!  To join the club, all you have to do is post pictures of your own colouring, your kids’ colouring, or that of anyone you know and have permission to share.

I managed once again to complete the month (of April) on my colouring calendar. This one was a little more sparse than previous ones, possibly to make up for May, which is going to be a challenge. Here is my April project:

Before

 

After

I coloured most of the big yellow flower at night – I was amazed at how much I’d missed when I looked at it in daylight!

I look forward to seeing all of your amazing projects in the coming month!

Please find the “rules” below.

1. This prompt is designed for relaxation. As such, I encourage you to take your time to link your own post here, BUT, when you comment, please click the “Notify me of new comments via email” button. That way you’ll receive a notification when someone else links their project and you won’t miss anything. As with all the prompts, the more you visit others, the more your community of like-minded people grows.

2. Ping back! It’s important so that I and other people can come and read your post. To execute a pingback, just copy and paste the URL found in your address bar at the top of this post into the body of your post. Your link will show up in my comments for everyone to see. The most recent pingbacks will be found at the top. NOTE: Pingbacks only work from WordPress sites. If you’re self-hosted or are participating from another host, such as Blogger, please leave a link to your post in the comments below.

3. There will be a prompt on the first of every month. I will try to post the prompt here on my blog at 9:30am -5 GMT. The prompt will simply be photos of my own colouring project. If you would like to host this prompt on your blog on another week during the month, either once, occasionally, or on a regular basis, please e-mail me at hilllindagmaru at gmail dot com and we’ll get you set up. All I ask is that you have an active blog and that you regularly reply to comments and visit other blogs.

4. Feel free to use the Escapist Coloring Club badge in your post.

5. Have fun!