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Guest Post on Pauline Barclay's Scribbles! Blog

26/1/2012

For those of you who might be interested in how living in Italy has changed my writing, I have a guest post on Pauline Barclay's Scribbles Blog, today. Come on over and leave a little comment love, won'cha?

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Thursday Thirteen: 13 Photos (and Videos) of Sophie "Doodlebug" Menozzi

26/1/2012

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While I was considering topics to post this morning, I watched my kitty playing with her pet string. Yes, I said "pet string". She has an old shoelace she plays with, and when she's done playing with it, she takes it to the sink or to her food dish and leaves it there. I'm not sure if she's trying to feed it or what.

Anyway, I decided that I'd share some of my favorite photos of my beloved monster with you this week. So please, allow me to present to you:

13 Photos (and Videos)
of Sophie "Doodlebug" Menozzi

Instant "WUV"!

1) *BONK*
The headbutt of love.
This was what, essentially, persuaded us to adopt her on her the spot.

One day, this whole sofa will be MINE!

2) Sophie explores the sofa.

*BOING*!

3) *BOING*!

So very "squee", no?

4) One of my favorite photos of my Doodlebug, taken the night after we adopted her.

"I'll do anything you want. Honest."

5) Doodle (as we call her) had to have medical attention - in the form of drops put in her ears - shortly after we adopted her. It was, needless to say, a challenging process. Our solution? A pink towel. Less painful all around, even if it was a two-person operation.

*GRRRRrrrrrrRRRRRRrrrrrr...*

6) Occasionally there were disagreements.

(It's hard to believe she was ever this tiny.)

"Feed me or DIE. The choice is yours."

7) At one point, I woke up to this face every single morning.

8) Doodle grew more vocal over time, too.

"Don't hate me because I'm beautiful. Worship me, instead."

9) Moody portrait of a kitten.

Mutually beneficial. Warmth for all!

10) Now that winter is here, this is how we're spending every night.

Bliss.

11) This is what she's doing right now - and where she's doing it, too.

12) This is how we spend much of our time, in one way or another.

13) And, finally, I want to share the first video I ever made of my Doodlebug, one day after she joined us.

And there you have 13 Photos (and Videos) of Sophie "Doodlebug" Menozzi.

I hope you can forgive me this indulgence.

I just wuv my kitty so much - even though she's a tremendous pain in the tushie sometimes.

And hey, who can resist a cuddly kitty?

I know you can't.

Miao - I mean - Ciao for now!

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Interview on Author Interrupted

22/1/2012

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It's two-two-two blogs today! I have an interview up on Author Interrupted with Kai Wilson - come by and share your thoughts on what I had to say, won't you?

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"Cappuccino, Anytime"

22/1/2012

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My monthly guest blogs for Book After Book continue this year - come over and see why you can enjoy "Cappuccino, Anytime" and leave a comment, as well, why don'cha?

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Thursday Thirteen - 13 (More) Frequently Misused/Confused Words

19/1/2012

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It's that time of year again! The time of year when I dredge my memory and cull information from the internet to demonstrate the continuing abuse of the English language. So, for this week's Thursday Thirteen, permit me to share

13 (More) Frequently Misused/Confused Words

1) "Then" and "Than" - I covered this before, didn't I? No? Okay. "Then" denotes the placement of events in time (First this happened, then that did).

"Than" denotes preference of one thing over another (I'd rather drink a strawberry milkshake than a banana one).

Why is this important? See illustration below:

Not exactly ye olde "laff riot", eh?

2) Humorous and humerus - "Humorous" (or "Humourous") means something is funny. "Humerus" is the upper bone in your arm.
(Yes, I've seen this mistake a few times. Disturbing, isn't it?)

3) "A lot" and "Alot" - "A lot" means frequently or often.
"This has been happening a lot, lately, hasn't it?"

"Alot" does not exist.
(Although Hyperbole and a Half had a fantastic post on the subject.)

4) "Should have" and "Should of" - This is actually pretty simple to remember:
It's never "of".
You should have, would have, could have, and so on. Some folks think this confusion came from the sound of the spoken contraction: People saying "Should've", "Could've" and "Would've" sound like they are saying "of", but they're not. I beg you - stop doing this!

5) "Where" and "were" -
"Where" is a direction.
"Were" is the past-tense of "to be".

Shut the shutters, Ma! Storm's a comin'!

6) "Shutter" and "Shudder" -
A "shutter" is what you put over a window to protect it or to close it.

A "shudder" is like a shiver, an involuntary shaking of the body, usually happening when one is exposed to something unpleasant.

7) "Lose" and "Loose" -
If you "lose" something, you can't find it (so it's lost).

If it's "loose" you need to tighten it - or you will lose it.

8) "Pray" and "Prey" - To "pray" is to converse with your religious higher power, whatever it might be. Also, in older English, to "pray" is to ask something of someone else, often someone in a position of power, ex: "Pray, tell me what you know of my father's fate."

"Prey", however, is something which is being hunted, or the act of being hunted. "The mouse was the cat's prey."

9) "Advise" and "Advice" - As it happens, there's a reason those people who advise you on what courses to take are called 'Advisors' and not 'Advicers'.

"Advice" is what you give someone when you "Advise" them in regards to something.

10) "Stationary" and "Stationery" - "Stationary" is related to movement.
"He remained stationary while everything else bobbed and weaved chaotically around him."

"Stationery" relates to writing materials - paper, pens, envelopes and so on.

11) "Compliment" and "Complement" -
If someone says something nice to you, they've given you a "Compliment".

If something completes something else or enhances it to some degree, it is a "complement" to it.

12) "Affect" and "Effect" - To "Affect" refers to making a change in or influencing something else "I didn't want to affect the outcome of the competition, so I withdrew my entry from the judging".

An "Effect" is the resulting change in something which has been altered or acted upon. "The scent of ginger has an invigorating effect on many people."

A pallet.

13) "Palate", "palette" and "pallet" - The "palate" is the "roof" of your mouth, and is also a term related to flavors and how they are perceived.

The "palette" refers to either the board an artist mixes colors on or to a range of colors.

A "pallet" is a low bed or the wooden platforms items are transported on (also called "skids").

Okay, then. I sincerely hope this helps some of you today.

And no, I'm not saying I'm perfect. I make mistakes too.

I'm just doing my part to make the world a little more grammatically correct.

Now I'm going to kick back and do some editing, some writing, and then I'm going to relax.

In fact...

I just might see what's in the fridge.

Ciao for now!

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Thursday Thirteen - 13 Things I Like About Twitter

12/1/2012

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Found myself in a bit of a time crunch as I've been writing and researching and pestering people for their help with information about the book, lately.

Which is actually how this week's topic came about. So please, permit me to share with you:

13 Things I Like About Twitter

1) It's a quick and easy way to see what some of my friends are up to - even better than Facebook, because the whole point of Twitter is to be concise.

A peek at my Twitter list of procyclists.

2) The reason I joined Twitter in the first place: Cyclists. They're everywhere on the site - from professionals to amateurs, from hobbyists to lobbyists, and I get a real sense of community amongst them.

3) The rapid spread of information is sometimes intriguing to watch on Twitter. The attempts to clear up misinformation are, too.

4) Being able to share news with a large group of people all at once is nice. The instant feedback is gratifying, too.

History in the making, y'all.

5) Classic tweets are still funny, even now. I'm pleased to say I've been following my boy Fabian from the start, and I've witnessed first-hand the birth of the words "bevor" and, as seen here, "planket". This is a word used almost daily in my house.

Make of that what you will.

6) Celebrities who use Twitter. I follow only a handful, but they're generally an entertaining bunch.

7) I like the fact I've been able to do some of my research via Twitter. The community there is remarkably good about helping get the word out when you need an answer to a question. I've been able to get lots of information "straight from the horse's mouth", as they say - cyclists, cycling fans and photographers alike have shared details with me which I believe will enrich 27 Stages considerably.

8) Naturally, I've met some wonderful people on Twitter, some of whom have become friends on other social media, and even - dare I say it? - in the "real" world.

9) I mentioned, of course, that I follow professional cyclists on Twitter. I have good reason to - some of their tweets are absolutely hilarious, or at the very least they're enlightening as to what life is like during the races and during the off-season, too.
Very, very useful stuff for me.

10) I also like being kept up to date on what my fellow writers are doing. Some of the random thoughts which come out of their heads and through their keyboards are distinctly amusing. Or ouch-worthy.

11) There are "characters" on Twitter, too, such as Sockington the cat. This kitty tweets his everyday experiences for his human audience's amusement, and reassures us that all cats are, at heart, pretty much the same. Bless their fuzzy little hearts.

12) The fact that anyone can share or "retweet" someone else's posts is interesting. You get to see what your friends (and total strangers) are into. It's actually a sometimes fascinating glimpse into people's minds.

13) Self-promo. I know it's been done to death on Twitter, but some people have come up with pretty clever takes on how to promote themselves or their work on this site. I particularly enjoy being able to share the promotion of people I know and love - and their projects I believe in - with people who have thought I'm worth following. Hopefully, all this sharing will lead to something more for all of us, eh?

So there you have them: 13 Things I Like About Twitter.

Feel free to agree or disagree, if you wish.

To be honest, I'm not entirely sure how well it works for getting the word out about my work, but I'm ever hopeful.

I mean, I'm really an optimist at heart. Where some people see the glass as half-empty, I say the glass is... well...uh...

I'm pretty sure I left it around here somewhere when I was reading...

Ciao for now!

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Thursday Thirteen: 13 Things I've Done in the Past Week

5/1/2012

11 Comments

Just for the heck of it, I thought I'd share a reasonably random peek into my life for this week's Thursday Thirteen. So now you have:

13 Things I've Done in the Past Week

1) Offered advice and - in a manner of speaking - counseling to a few different folks via Twitter. I've also been incredibly silly there, too. It's funny - I didn't think I'd like Twitter much, but a friend persuaded me to use it to follow all the cyclists on there. Now I'm pretty well hooked on it!

Doodle!

2) My darling furball, Sophie (a.k.a., Doodlebug) has seen to it that I've been awakened at varying points throughout the night to keep her company/feed her/I have no idea why. So, one reason I don't have a smashing TT post is because I'm incredibly sleepy.

3) This week, I agreed to continue doing guest blogs for Book After Book. I'm pleased to be able to continue my ongoing relationship with this book blog. It's been a lot of fun, so far - and now I'll be writing about more subjects than before, including a fictional piece or two.

Inspiring, isn't he?

4) I've gotten back to work on 27 Stages in a big way. Needless to say, this pleases me. I'm roughly four chapters away from wrapping up the first draft. Wish me luck!

5) I vacuumed most of the house. Except for the bedroom where my kitty was cowering, because I couldn't bring myself to scare her further with the vacuum. Even though she has no qualms about keeping me up at night.

I'm a sucker. I know.

It's a good read!

6) I'm reading (will finish it today, actually) my wonderful critique partner Nell Dixon's book, Crystal Clear.

7) On a similar note, I also got to critique a couple of chapters of one of Nell's current Works-in-Progress. I can't wait to see how this one will play out!

Short and sexy, just like me!

8) This week (this morning, in fact) saw the end of Alternate Rialto as one of Amazon's free offerings. I have mixed emotions about this. I enjoyed seeing the (for me) higher "sales" numbers, but I really would like to actually earn some money on this book, too.

9) I saw the New Year in with my hubby's family. We had a quiet evening - well, mostly, as there was a hyper-excited three-and-a-half year old involved - and that's how I prefer to go about it.

I'm still pleased with this cover.

10) This week also saw Ask Me if I'm Happy as the Book in the Spotlight for the day over at the Famous Five Plus blog.

11) I've helped my hubby with his Beatles homework*, and we've watched episodes of Beatles Anthology via YouTube almost every night this week. It has been a wonderful way to wind down and end the day, and I'll miss it when we've watched the whole series.

*My hubby was told by a friend of ours to "study" the Beatles albums when he confessed over a dinner that he wasn't exactly familiar with all of their work.

12) I finally managed to get the exercise bike brought up and put in my office. This picture is of the model I have, but it's not a photo of mine. I just wanted you to see that I'm rocking this thing old school. (I can't wait to ride my real bike again!)

13) In relation to #2 above - I spent a couple of hours poring over maps of France in order to plot out the final two race stages of 27 Stages. I even had to negotiate a French train ticket site in order to be sure I hadn't gone mad with the route planning.
I don't speak French.
It was exhausting.

Don't judge me.

I know, it doesn't sound like much when I mention it like this, but these events really have kept me quite busy over the last week.

And I'm pretty prone to distractions, so that doesn't help.

I mean, I'm wandering around online, here and there, tra-la-la-ing as I go...

And then...

I'm sorry, I... ah... Hmmm?

Ciao for now!

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Guest Post on Pauline Barclay's Scribbles! Blog

Thursday Thirteen: 13 Photos (and Videos) of Sophie "Doodlebug" Menozzi

13 Photos (and Videos)
of Sophie "Doodlebug" Menozzi

Interview on Author Interrupted

"Cappuccino, Anytime"

Thursday Thirteen - 13 (More) Frequently Misused/Confused Words

13 (More) Frequently Misused/Confused Words

Thursday Thirteen - 13 Things I Like About Twitter

13 Things I Like About Twitter

Thursday Thirteen: 13 Things I've Done in the Past Week

13 Things I've Done in the Past Week

Kimberly Menozzi

Please note: Thanks to an increase in spam comments, I'll be approving the comments before they post. Sorry!

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