Life in progress


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One-Liner Wednesday – A what kind of ritual?

A trivia Quiz question from the Facebook game.

In Scandinavia, what is “blodpalt”?

A) A desk from IKEA

B) Pickled herring

C) Blood dumplings

D) A deadly wedding ritual

And all this time I thought weddings were supposed to be happy occasions… (P.S. The answer is not “D.”)

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 lovely badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

Badge by Laura @ riddlefromthemiddle.com

Available now! Click the image!


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The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS April 13, 2024

It’s Friday! And so am I with your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Winston’s saga continues. I’ll try to post about it soon. Here’s this week’s prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: ends with “ound.” Find a word (or words) that ends with “ound” and use it any way you’d like. Have fun!

After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here to 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 beautiful 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!!

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

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. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a particular 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 will simply be a single word to get you 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 all of them! 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 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!


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One-Liner Wednesday – Nuh-uh

I don’t care if they’re bees or wasps, come summer, if I were squirrels living in those nests, I’d be packing my nuts and moving out.

Photo: In a tree, still with no leaves, four squirrels’ nests high up in the branches share the space with a bee or wasp nest that’s the same size. The squirrel nests are made of dead leaves and the other nest is white and round.

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 lovely badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

Badge by Laura @ riddlefromthemiddle.com

Available now! Click the image!


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The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS April 6, 2024

The first Friday of April is here! And so am I with your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. It’s been a rough week here in the Hill household. Winston is sick with tummy issues. I have all the meds and the special diet now, so hopefully he’ll be on the mend soon. Here’s this week’s prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “express.” Use it as a noun, verb, adverb, or adjective. Use it any way you’d like. Enjoy!

After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here to 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 beautiful 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!!

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

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. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a particular 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 will simply be a single word to get you 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 all of them! 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 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 33 Comments

One-Liner Wednesday – Screen time

My time on my phone might be good, but if my laptop ever decides to count the hours in a day…

Photo: A screenshot of a phone app telling me that out of an average 10 hours and 56 minutes in a day, I spend 11 minutes with my screen on.

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 lovely badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

Badge by Laura @ riddlefromthemiddle.com

Available now! Click the image!


by 15 Comments

#SoCS – Just plain lazy

There’s no other way to describe my weekend than just plain lazy.

I’ve barely done anything this weekend.

Well, I did go for a mile-long walk with Alex today.

And I am going to write “The End” on a 93,000-word novel tonight, as long as life doesn’t go sideways on me.

But I didn’t write all those words this weekend. It’s taken me three months.

Maybe I’ve earned a lazy weekend.

Happy Easter!

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

This short, day late, plain lazy post was brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Find the prompt here and join in! It’s fun!


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Time is running out!

I mentioned a while back that I have a subscription account with Ream, a platform where you can read and stay caught up with your favorite author’s worlds.

To celebrate my beginnings there, I set up a subscription tier where you can get the first two months for free, and with that, you will receive:

  • four books at no cost in those two months (The Magician’s Curse, The Magician’s Blood, Saddled, and Rocked)
  • copies of all my published books in the months to follow
  • early access to all the books I write in the future—I’m almost finished writing the second book of a new sexy vampire reverse harem romance, so new content is coming soon!
  • inclusion in an exclusive community where I’ll keep you updated on all the news in my writing life and we can chat about books and all the things we love about them
  • free short stories published in anthologies, not all of which are currently available
  • and more!

And all at a lower monthly cost than anyone else will pay for all these features in the future.

You can join my Grand Entrance tier using the coupon code GRANDENTRANCE to get access to two months free and two free books right now. You can cancel any time, but I do hope you’ll stick around!

This offer expires April 1st, so only a few days left.

If you enjoy my stories, this is a deal that won’t be matched. I hope to see you there!

Here’s the link to my Ream page!


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The Friday Reminder and Prompt for #SoCS March 30, 2024

It’s not only Friday, it’s Good Friday! And I’m here with your Stream of Consciousness Saturday prompt. Are you ready for Easter? If not, better hop to it! (See what I did there?) Here’s this week’s prompt:

Your Friday prompt for Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “plain/plane.” Use one, use ’em both, bonus points if you get ’em both in your post. Have fun!

After you’ve written your Saturday post tomorrow, please link it here to 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 beautiful 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!!

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

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. I will post the prompt here on my blog every Friday, along with a reminder for you to join in. The prompt will be one random thing, but it will not be a particular 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 will simply be a single word to get you 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 all of them! 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 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 35 Comments

One-Liner Wednesday – Responsibility

My March calendar page.

Photo: The bottom left-hand corner of my wall calendar features a cartoon of a little girl with her hands on her hips and the quote: “If you want children to keep their feet on the ground, put some responsibility on their shoulders.” ~ Abigail Van Buren (aka Dear Abby)

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 lovely badge to your post for extra exposure!

5. Have fun!

Badge by Laura @ riddlefromthemiddle.com

Available now! Click the image!


by 17 Comments

#SoCS – My spare … bedroom?

When I decided on the house I’m living in, one of the things I liked was that it had a spare bedroom. Somewhere my mother could sleep when she came over for a holiday.

And it worked out well for the first … I’m going to say eight years I was here.

Then it was 2020 and my mother stopped coming over. She moved to a nursing home and I needed somewhere to put her stuff.

Guess where it went.

Guess where some of it still is.

I decided to repurpose the room as my office since it already had a desk in it, at the foot of the bed.

The bed that’s piled two feet high with stuff I didn’t have anywhere else to put.

But my back is to it, so I only see it if I get up. Or if I’m on a video call.

My office is where I work. Where I procrastinate.

I have evidence.

It’s sneaking up behind me.

2019-2020 SoCS Badge by Shelley! https://www.quaintrevival.com/

This cluttered post was brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Find the prompt here and join in! It’s fun!