Spotlight: Duke with Benefits by Manda Collins

by Carol1 Comment
Read an excerpt: “There you are, my dear,” said the Earl of Forsyth with a beaming smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. Maitland saw at once that Daphne favored him. Her green eyes were the same shade as his, though there were lines of dissipation bracketing the earl’s. And though his expertly cropped blond hair was shot through with silver, what remained of its original color was the same shade as hers. But whereas Daphne’s gaze was focused off to the left of whomever she conversed with, like a bird hovering just over a branch, Forsyth’s speared one with cold calculation. As he did to Daphne now. “You are looking well, Daphne,” the earl continued, stepping forward to embrace his daughter, who looked as uncomfortable with the contact as Maitland had ever seen her. “The sea air agrees with you. As I knew it would.” “The sea is very beautiful,” Daphne replied woodenly. “Why are you here, Father?” “Is that any way to greet...
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Thursday’s Tale: Aurora Borealis

by Carol3 Comments
Today starts the Sci-Fi Summer Readathon. It's not surprising that there aren't many sci-fi-ish folk tales or fairy tales out there, so instead I found a spacey tale. This story comes from the Walter J. Hoffman's book, The Menomini Indians, circa 1888. I found it at Windows to the Universe.org. The Menomini are a federally recognized nation of Native Americans, with a reservation in Wisconsin. Historically, the tribe occupied a territory in upper Michigan and Wisconsin.  Their explanation of the aurora borealis is simple, but I like it. In the direction of the north wind live the manabai'wok (giants), of whom we have heard our old people tell. The manabai'wok are our friends, but we do not see them anymore. They are great hunters and fishermen, and whenever they are out with their torches to spear fish we know it, because then the sky is bright over the place where they are. I've never seen the northern lights. I'm told there are times when...
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Sci-Fi Summer Readathon

by Carol1 Comment
The Sci-Fi Summer Readathon starts today. I don't tend to read a lot of sci-fi, but I've got a couple I've been looking forward to so this gives me the perfect excuse to pull them off my shelf. From Seasons of Reading: Readathon dates: Thursday, June 1 at 12:00am CDT until Wednesday, June 7 at 11:59pm CDT (adjust your time zone accordingly). We do a different day configuration (rather than starting on a Monday and ending on a Sunday) to go along with the weirdness of Sci-Fi. 👽 Since Sci-Fi is a very specific genre, this will be strictly reading science fiction during the event. However, since fantasy is so closely related to science fiction, if you feel more comfortable reading fantasy, that is also fine. To check in on social media, we'll use hashtag #SciFiSummerJune As usual, you do not have to have a blog to participate...feel free to link up and check in from Goodreads, Facebook, Twitter, etc. These days, it seems most...
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Readers’ Workouts – 5/30

by Carol1 Comment
I made my step goal for the week.   FitBit's running a 30-day spring challenge that I'm participating in. For the burpees, I'm just doing a stand up at the end, as described in the challenge, not a jump. I'm modifying the push-ups by keeping my knees on the floor. FitBit May Challenge Day 1: Done (7687) Day 2: Done Day 3: Done Day 4: Done (10849) Day 5: Done Day 6 Done Day 7: Rest Day 8: Done (7763) Day 9: Done Day 10: Done Day 11: Failed (6887) Day 12: Done Day 13: Done Day 14: Rest Day 15: Done (8797) Day 16: Done (but on Day 17 because I forgot) Day 17: Done Day 18: Done (12454) Day 19: Done Day 20: Done Day 21: Rest Day 22: Done (9386) Day 23: Done Day 24: Done Day 25: Done (11375) Day 26: Done Day 27: Done Day 28: Rest Day 29: Failed (9574) This week: Wednesday - Weights Thursday - Elliptical, Walk with the dog Friday - Walk with the dog Monday - Played horseshoes Meal plan: Sloppy Joe Pizza Burgers Chicken enchiladas Fish tacos Year Fitness Goals: - Lose weight. Goal - Lose 26 lbs. Current: -3 - Run 2 5ks, 1 10K and 1 half. Completed -...
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Thursday’s Tale: The Affair of the Hippopotamus and the Tortoise

by Carol1 Comment
Today I have another story retold by Elphinstone Dayrell in Folk Stories from Southern Nigeria, 1910. "The Affair of the Hippopotamus and the Tortoise" tells why the hippopotamus is always in the water. I found the story at worldoftales.com. Many years ago the hippopotamus, whose name was Isantim, was one of the biggest kings on the land; he was second only to the elephant. The hippo had seven large fat wives, of whom he was very fond. Now and then he used to give big feasts for everyone, but a curious thing was that, although everyone knew the hippo, no one, except his seven wives, knew his name. At one of the feasts, just as they were about to sit down, the hippo said, "You have come to feed at my table, but none of you know my name. If you cannot tell my name, you shall all of you go away without your dinner." As they could not guess his name, they had to...
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My Favorite . . Thing About Spring

by Carol4 Comments
My Favorite.. is a weekly meme hosted by Maureen’s Books. In this meme we share every week something we love with each other. Because let’s face it.. The world can be a dark place and it’s time to share something positive. For more info: My Favorite Meme. My favorite thing about spring is just the fact that it's warmer. I hate cold weather. I'm happier in the summer when the temps are in the 80s and 90s, but spring is getting there, especially on sunny days. I like other things too, flowers, and leaves on the trees, and sunshine, even though that's been lacking the last few days. What's your favorite thing about spring? Join in at Maureen's Books....
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