Here’s a recap of the crazy words included in this week’s WACKY WORD of the Day. Don’t forget the contest: use any of these words in a sentence and you will be automatically entered in this month’s drawing to win one of my books. We’ll begin a new monthly contest in February. There is still time to add your sentences as comments to this blog posting or on my other social media sites (Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin). MONDAY — MINIM (adjective) = a musical half note or something very small or insignificant TUESDAY — FLANEUR (noun) = an aimless idler or loafer. THURSDAY — HAIMISH (adjective) = homey, cozy FRIDAY — […]
Read more...ARE YOU SUFFERING FROM MARITAL DISCONNECT?
My husband and I have been together for thirty years (wait… what in the world?) and during that time we have experienced many valleys and mountain tops in our relationship. We struggled the most when we didn’t spend time together. Many couples feel like two ships passing in the night… radar might indicate there’s another vessel out there, but they can’t see or hear one another. In fact, they may be on a collision course without even knowing it. The pace of our lives has become frantic—climbing the corporate ladder, raising overscheduled kids, trying to be the volunteer of the year—it’s no wonder we have precious little time for our spouse. Good […]
Read more...A WHOLE New Ball Game
Aren’t you getting tired of everybody telling you to eat whole grains? I know it sounds like a broken record, but as a newbie on the road to wellness, I’m going to do it again. Sorry. If you’ll recall from last week’s first WELLNESS WEDNESDAY, I am trying to incorporate small changes in my life to make me healthier, happier, and more energized. So far we’ve talked about the importance of drinking a ridiculous amount of water every day. Doing so has health benefits from your brain all the way to the vascular system in your tippy toes, and it is a small thing to do to keep the specialists away. Today we […]
Read more...A CAREER IS LAUNCHED!
Back in 2005, my daughter invited her friend, Justin, to join her at youth group. Surprisingly, he looked her square in the face and said, “How do you even know He’s real?” She had no idea how to respond to that question, and to be honest, neither did I. It haunted me. That is the universal question isn’t it? How do we know Christ is real? To many people, Jesus is just a legend, a wise and kind man, a prophet. I wondered, what would convince people like Justin that following Jesus is worth a try? I embarked on a journey to prove that Christ is real. In a moment […]
Read more...WACKY WORDS OF THE DAY RECAP – Week of January 13
It is week 2 of my WACKY WORD OF THE DAY blogs. Remember, use the word in a sentence and post it here, on Facebook, LinkedIn, or Twitter, and I’ll add your name to the monthly drawing to win one of my books! Enter as many times as you want. Without further ado, here are last week’s words: January 14 ORTHOGONAL (adjective) = at right angles January 15 CRESTOMATHY – (noun) – a volume of selected passages or stories of an author, anthology January 16 FLAGITIOUS (adjective) = extremely wicked or criminal, or guilty of scandalous vices January 17 THEWLESS (adjective) = cowardly, timid, or lacking energy In love and […]
Read more...A Big Piece of Humble Pie
If an author’s publisher has a little marketing budget (rare these days) he or she may get booked on some TV and radio broadcasts to gain publicity and move some books. The publicist (Nashville Publicity) for my first two books did a phenomenal job and I was on all kinds of fun shows. Several years ago I made a quick trip to Indiana for an appearance on the Harvest Show. These little jaunts can be grueling. You spend days preparing and traveling for an interview that only lasts about 10 minutes, but it’s all part of the game. Hopefully the time spent away from family and work pays off in […]
Read more...THE WONDERS OF WATER
I sold yellow pages advertising for twelve years, eleven of those years as an outside sales consultant dealing with major accounts. While it was a great way to make a living, it was definitely NOT glamorous. Most of my clients weren’t in luxurious offices with mahogany furniture; they were plumbers, remodelers, and roofers working out of a van. As long as I live, I’ll never forget meeting with a mechanic at his auto repair shop in a suburb of St. Paul. I pulled up to the dilapidated shop in my yuppie sedan and clicked up to the front door wearing three-inch heals and a designer suit. I swallowed hard when I […]
Read more...MY LIFE AS A WRITER
Many of you are aware that I am a writer, but you have no idea what kind of work I do. Well, it is time to remedy that. Writing is not a hobby for me, it is my profession. After spending more than twenty years in corporate sales and marketing, I made a huge career U-turn and wrote a book. It was an insane idea; I had never had a word published. In fact, If you would have told me back in 2005 that I would be wearing pajama pants to work instead of suits and pantyhose, I would have recommended a good therapist. Yet here I am interviewing the […]
Read more...WACKY WORDS OF THE DAY RECAP – Week of January 6
If you are a friend or fan of mine on a social networking site, you already know about my WACKY WORD OF THE DAY posts. In a tongue-in-cheek attempt to improve our vocabularies, I post a fun word every day (well, I do miss a few) along with its definition and pronunciation if it’s a toughie. If you don’t get a chance to see them on Facebook, Twitter, or Linkedin during the week, you can check out the recaps here each Saturday. Now, this is more than just a fun linguistic exercise; you can actually win something! Every time you leave a comment using the word in a sentence (either […]
Read more...A Slippery Slope
Last night I enjoyed an abbreviated game of Bunco with a group of friends. Unfortunately the aura of an impending migraine came on and I had to pop an Imitrex and leave early. I felt pretty sorry for myself; I had been looking forward to getting together with the ladies for a long time. It was a dismal night of freezing drizzle in rural Minnesota. As I headed out to my car, head pounding and stomach lurching, I steadied myself against the vehicles lining the driveway to prevent myself from taking a flop on the ice. The drive home wasn’t too precarious until I reached our township where the roads are poorly […]
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