A Life of Crime and Chocolate

French Maiden

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I'm right on the coast, so we get storms really quite fierce, the winds can be so destructive, but they're amazing. Mother Nature at her finest.

Todays one wasnt anything impressive, but it's the first storm we've had since December. It mostly just drizzled all day long with a few flashes of lightning and a few claps of thunder, but it's a storm nonetheless.

There was one massive clap of thunder that came out of absolutely no where. I had both the front and back doors wide open to let the cold in. and then all of a sudden there was this massive crack and the windows rattled. Then there was silence and I havnt heard any thunder since and that was at about lunch time.
My poor Freya absolutely pooped herself though. She isnt usually afraid of thunder and lightning, but that one scared her. Hell, it scared me.
 

Zelenka

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I also love thunderstorms - Prague gets such spectacular ones in the summer. It's been raining pretty badly here in Sydney tonight though but I didn't notice any thunder. Flying over the northeast coast, down past Brisbane, we saw this really big storm. It was weird to watch it from above, and so many stars as well! It was kind of an awesome sight to see nature without loads of manmade stuff getting in the way. I think everyone else on the plane was asleep at the time but I couldn't stop watching out the window like a little kid!
 

Silver-Midnight

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Go for it! I always listen to music while I write. I listen to stuff I know really well, or is really atmospheric. A lot of the time I listen to film scores or instrumental music. I tend to focus in on lyrics so not having any helps stop me getting distracted. Same with albums I know inside out. I know them so well that I don't have to "listen" to them.

Cool. :) I kind of already have albums and playlists made, thankfully. I just have to listen to them.

Happy belated, Silver!

Thank you! :D

Happy birthday Silver!

Thanks!! :D
 

Mr Mitchell

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Happy Birthday Silver, hope you had a good one.

Liz, get better soon.

Life is good at the moment. Next Thursday I am going to a presentation to celebreate the achivements of other young people - I think it's good to celebreate things, anything, anything good anyway.
 

GailD

Still chasing plot bunnies.
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Hey! A belated Happy Birthday, Silver!!!! :partyguy: Sorry I missed it but I hope you have the best year ever!!! :D


Liz, you have every right to 'hover'. :D I would too, if I were you.


And 'man flu'? Here, they turn into a whole new category - homo patheticus. :ROFL:

Ooo. And news here. Yesterday evening I met the fiction editor of the publication I'm writing for. He'd managed to get the very last copies of the issues that have my stories in them. So, now I haz them. :snoopy: Also, I mentioned that I'm starting work on a non-fiction book and he got so excited about it that he sent off two text messages to people he knows at publishers and said he would email some others today. He's been in the writing/publishing business for about 40 years or something, so he knows everybody worth knowing. (I think I'm going to need to learn how to network. :))

:D
 

Shakesbear

knows a hawk from a handsaw
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My sis-in-laws 92 year old dad was taken into hospital early this morning with severe chest pains. My sis and I were at school together, bestest of friends. I have known her dad for the best part of fifty years - 22 years longer than I knew my own dad. I feel so gutted - just want him to be well.
 

Shakesbear

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Thanks guys - much appreciated. Still no news - not sure if that is good or bad.
 

Shakesbear

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Thanks again. Well, I am not sure if the news is good or bad. Seems dad knew there was something wrong, but he did not want to be a nuisance and trouble any one. Sigh . . . been there before. He may have an ulcer and at the moment he is on various meds to control the pain and the ulcer. At his age an operation is not the best solution. He'll be in hospital for a few days while they assess him and decide what to do for the best. I am somewhere between relief and an urge to strangle him. He never wants to be any trouble which means that he ends up causing himself and the family grief! That said he has always had the ability to make me laugh, as well as other people. He is a complete nut! When my bro got engaged SIL mum held a little soiree. My parents and SILs parents knew each other - my paternal grandparents had not met my bro's future in laws before. So . . . my grandmother had no sense of humour. None. At. All. So - dad comes into the sitting room to meet her for the first time. He has on a bright orange wig, a bloody bandage round his head and a (trick) knife - handle at the front of his head, pointy bit at the back. He shakes grandma's hand and says "I don't know why but I've got a splitting head ache!" My grand dad fell about laughing. Grandmother picked her bag up and told my father she wanted to go home. "You can't leave yet!" said the man in the orange wig, "you haven't tried the stewed kishkas*!" The best one? He put a plunger - round rubber thing with a long handle used to unblock sinks - on his forehead to make his daughters laugh. It worked - they laughed but he could not get the plunger off. When he did he had a big round bruise on his forehead. LOL! He had to go to work the next day and no one wanted to sit next to him on the bus.

*Yiddish fof guts
 

French Maiden

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Thanks again. Well, I am not sure if the news is good or bad. Seems dad knew there was something wrong, but he did not want to be a nuisance and trouble any one. Sigh . . . been there before. He may have an ulcer and at the moment he is on various meds to control the pain and the ulcer. At his age an operation is not the best solution. He'll be in hospital for a few days while they assess him and decide what to do for the best. I am somewhere between relief and an urge to strangle him. He never wants to be any trouble which means that he ends up causing himself and the family grief! That said he has always had the ability to make me laugh, as well as other people. He is a complete nut! When my bro got engaged SIL mum held a little soiree. My parents and SILs parents knew each other - my paternal grandparents had not met my bro's future in laws before. So . . . my grandmother had no sense of humour. None. At. All. So - dad comes into the sitting room to meet her for the first time. He has on a bright orange wig, a bloody bandage round his head and a (trick) knife - handle at the front of his head, pointy bit at the back. He shakes grandma's hand and says "I don't know why but I've got a splitting head ache!" My grand dad fell about laughing. Grandmother picked her bag up and told my father she wanted to go home. "You can't leave yet!" said the man in the orange wig, "you haven't tried the stewed kishkas*!" The best one? He put a plunger - round rubber thing with a long handle used to unblock sinks - on his forehead to make his daughters laugh. It worked - they laughed but he could not get the plunger off. When he did he had a big round bruise on his forehead. LOL! He had to go to work the next day and no one wanted to sit next to him on the bus.

*Yiddish fof guts


Glad he's okay, hopefuly the meds work.
Hehe he's a practical joker.
My eldest brother did the plunger thing too, he couldnt get it off either. He had to go to school with a giant black bruise on his forehead.
 

Shakesbear

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Glad he's okay, hopefuly the meds work.

Seems the ulcer is perforated. He is having an op at 09.30 tomorrow. Sigh . . . if they don't operate he has no chance and at his age the op is a great risk. So . . . prayers and vibes would be so good,please .

Hehe he's a practical joker.
My eldest brother did the plunger thing too, he couldnt get it off either. He had to go to school with a giant black bruise on his forehead.

He is a joker! What is it with males and plungers?
 

heyjude

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Oh, shakes, he sounds like my Gram. Any fuss is too much fuss. I'm praying for his comfort.

Just came back from a lovely lunch with Desert Author. :) I love meeting AWers! I want to meet each of you someday.
 

French Maiden

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Seems the ulcer is perforated. He is having an op at 09.30 tomorrow. Sigh . . . if they don't operate he has no chance and at his age the op is a great risk. So . . . prayers and vibes would be so good,please .



He is a joker! What is it with males and plungers?

Oh no, I pray the surgery goes exactly as planned.
 

HistorySleuth

Researching History's Mysteries
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Sending along hugs Shakes!! Loved the plunger story BTW.

I need words. I'm doing a double writing challenge for April
Help Pick My Words for A-Z Challenge + Camp NaNoWriMo

I'm doing a seat-of-my-pants mini-mystery and I'm asking others to pick my 26 words for me. Thought I would add even more insanity to my mix. :D If you want to give me a word follow the link above and leave in the comment section of my blog.

Should be crazy fun and I hope it makes some sense by the time it's done.
 

Shakesbear

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All the hugs and thoughts mean a lot. Thank you. Dad is in the operating theatre - at least he should be. I don't know where to put myself so am going to get a taxi into town and shop. Two things I need - a new steel/knife sharpener and a stand for my embroidery ring. Hopefully at some point I will get good news about dad.
 

GailD

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Aw :( that's very worrying about your SIL's dad, Shakes. :Hug2:Hope all goes well. Sending good thoughts.

Shopping is a good distraction - since there's nothing you can do but wait.



PS. I'm short of sage-green embroidery silk. If you happen to come across any. :D
 

Shakesbear

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Still no news!

Would that be the same green as the cats' bow? So cute!