Happy New Year's Eve!

I know that many of you have your copies of Fugitive in your hot little hands, so you probably won't spend much time here on the blog reading and drooling over the hunks, so I'll be brief!

A whole box of books is headed toward the Borders in Bloomington for my booksigning on Saturday. I sure hope it makes it in time. Apparently it only has to come from Wisconsin, so surely in three days time it will arrive!

Peaches update:
She is doing just fine! She would be eating a whole case of dog food if I gave it to her, but she is still limited to 1 1/2 cans of this special stuff. She's getting a bit stir crazy being all penned up most of the time, but we let her out some so she can stretch her legs a bit. She's learning what it means to be a house dog, and learning pretty quickly, too!






















In other news, I sold my horse, Damar, to one of the doctors at the hospital. The check was waiting for me when I got to work Tuesday night, and though it will help pay Peaches' vet bills, it will by no means pay them off entirely. I hope Damar will be happy in his new home--he's such a sweetie, and I know they'll love him just as much as I do.

Well, must wrap this up and head out to work. I'm working New Year's Eve, too, and I've got my bottle of sparkling grape juice all ready to go. It's kinda fun being at work that night, and on more than one occasion I've had a patient who was alert enough to know what day it was and I've shared a toast with them to better days and better health.

Keep safe this New Year's Eve, and Happy Reading!

Whopping Weasel Wednesday!

I just realized with five minutes before I have to leave for work that I have no post up for Wednesday!!!!

I can't go off and leave you ladies hanging. Fortunately, the Whopping Weasels are in good supply!

Enjoy the day!

Tasty Tuesday Chili with Marco!

I posted Donna's chili recipe a while back, but with the cold weather firmly entrenched around here, I figure it wouldn't hurt to post one more. I posted this last January, but I've modified it slightly since then.

Cheryl's Tummy Warming Chili

1 lb 14 oz can light red kidney beans
1 lb 12 oz can diced tomatoes; pureed
1 tsp salt
1 lb very lean hamburger
2 cloves garlic; diced
1 tsp sugar
1 bay leaf
3 tbsp Mexene chili powder
1 large onion; chopped
1 jalapeno; seeded and diced
2 tbsp butter
3 oz spaghetti broken into thirds or 1 cup of any other pasta or macaroni you choose

Melt butter in large soup pot and saute onions until transparent. Add hamburger and cook until browned. Add all other ingredients except pasta and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook for 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add pasta and cook another fifteen minutes, stirring every 5 minutes. Serve topped with grated cheese and enjoy with a nice, hot hunk on the side!

Monday Moons and Happy Birthday to ME!

Since it's my birthday, I believe I'll just post my favorite hunk one more time. . . .




















And seeing as how it's also a Monday, I'll break out the birthday buns!

I'll even tell you my age. I'm 54 years old today. My mother died at 47, and I never thought I'd live longer than she did, but I managed to do it somehow, and I gotta tell ya, I wouldn't have missed these past few years for anything.

My fifth book is about to be released, and some of you already have a copy in your hot little hands. I mean, wow. Who'd have thunk it?

So, here's to another year of life on this planet we call Earth. It's changed a lot in the past 54 years. When I was a kid, there were no such things as cell phones, video games, or plasma TV's. There wasn't even cable TV, and flying to the moon was the stuff of fiction.

In my writing, I've tried to imagine what the distant future would be like, but I'm having trouble keeping up with recent advances. When you can post something on the internet and have it pop up on computers all around the world, flying across the galaxy 1000 years from now almost seems feasible. The trouble is, we still don't know if there's anything worth seeing out there--anything alive, anyway. Extra-terrestrial life is still that big question mark in the sky.

But, damn! Wouldn't it be fun to travel through space and actually run across the planet Zetith; still green and pristine and filled with hot, sexy alien men? Maybe that's what I'll wish for when I blow out the candles this year.

Of course, you know what they say: "Be careful what you wish for. You may get it."

Even so, I may take that risk. . . .

Sunday's Hunk of the Day!

This picture was tagged as Tyler Cummings, but we also know him as Cody.

What's in a name?

Cody, by any other name would taste as sweet. . . .


Enjoy the day!


PS: When you get tired of Cody, I'm blogging on Wickedly Romantic today. Come on over!

Saturday's Hunk of the Day!

Here's a Scandinavian bad boy for your after Christmas enjoyment.


I bet he got a bundle of switches for Christmas!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

HO HO HO!!!!

Okay! We've got the tree!






















We've got the cookies!


























We've got the presents.



















We've got snow.





















We've got Santa.




























We've got Peaches!






















We've got another Santa.



























Now if we could only have a little peace on earth.
















Here's my wish for everyone to have a Merry Christmas and a Happy and peaceful New Year.

Merry Christmas Eve!

Don't you just love Christmas Eve? All the hype and the preparations are (hopefully) done, giving you the opportunity to relax and enjoy the warmth of the season. To gaze at your tree while you sip a cup of hot cider. To watch sappy old movies and Christmas specials you've seen a million times and will probably watch a million more. To nibble on the cookies you've been baking all week and maybe spike a little eggnog.

Egg Nog

4 eggs
4 tbsp rum (optional)
6 tbsp powdered sugar
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
dash of salt
1 cup cream

Beat egg yolks with other ingredients and then beat into stiffly beaten egg whites. Chill and serve.

OR, for a quicker, easier version, just dump it all in the blender and let 'er rip!

Christmas Eve has become just such a time for us in the past few years. We used to spend the whole day making the 100 mile trip to and from Louisville to visit with family and friends, usually not getting home until midnight. It was hectic and rushed; we'd barely get settled into a conversation at one place before having to hustle on to another. Some years the visit to the cemetery to take a tree or wreath to our son who died before he was born got missed. One year we got there only to wind up locking the keys in the truck and having to walk a good distance in the freezing cold to the nearest telephone and then having to wait for the locksmith; hoping he'd get there before they locked the gates to the cemetery. This, of course, was before any of us carried a cell phone--though even if we had, they probably would have been locked in along with the keys.

But lately, we've been doing the rounds on the Saturday before Christmas, giving us the luxury of a Christmas Eve spent at home with just me and the guys. I always liked getting home late in the old days, because I would spend the stroke of midnight feeding the horses up at the barn, hoping that the old myth that animals can talk at that time was true, but there's a lot to be said for being inside where it's snug and warm. Besides, if they ever talked to me, it certainly wasn't in English!

I love the glow of candles, the scent of pine, and the sparkle of the lights on the tree. We've already watched most of our Christmas favorites, beginning with Scrooge and A Wish for Wings That Work on Thanksgiving night and A Christmas Story the night Mikey came home from college, so The Santa Clause will be what we have left for Christmas Eve.

This year we'll have the added blessing of (hopefully) getting Peaches home and healthy in time for Christmas. Unfortunately, the treats I bought for her gift will have to wait another week or so until she's fully healed and can eat regular dog food, but something tells me she really won't mind. She'll just be glad to be home, and so will we.

I hope everyone has a wonderful day tomorrow, but for now,

Merry Christmas to all, and to all, a good night!

PS: Hop on over to Casablanca Authors for a chance to win a signed copy of Fugitive!

Whopping Weasel Wednesday!

Okay, here's the front side of Athan, this week's Monday Moons entry.

Click on him. He gets bigger!

I'm blogging today on Casablanca Authors, so come on over!

Tasty Tuesday Potato Soup!

When I was growing up, it was a tradition in our house to have potato soup for dinner on Christmas Eve. My mother never explained why, but since she rarely made it any other time, I'm thinking it had some special significance. Unfortunately, I never thought to ask her before she died in 1977.

This isn't her recipe, but one I've developed on my own over the years, and it's pretty close to the original.

Potato Soup

1 large chopped onion
3 tbsp flour
3 cups water
3 cups potatoes, peeled and diced
3 tablespoons butter
1 1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups hot (not boiling) milk

In a large soup pot, saute the onion in the butter over medium high heat until transparent. Whisk the flour into the water and add it and all ingredients except the milk to the pot. Bring to a boil, then cover and reduce heat to low, stirring occasionally and cooking until potatoes are soft. Add the milk and adjust seasoning as desired, adding more butter if necessary. Top with grated cheese and enjoy!

Monday Moons!

I'm supposed to pick up Peaches from the vet today if she's doing okay. The vet told me on Saturday that she wasn't out of the woods yet, but as I write this on Sunday morning, I have no idea what's going on with her.

That's the bad thing about the vet's office; no one answers the phone on Sundays. I have to assume that someone goes into the office to care for the pets that are there over the weekend, so if there was anything terribly wrong someone would call me, but, unlike a hospital, you can't visit on Sundays which leaves you in limbo to a certain extent.

Another thing I'm worried about is that Peaches is essentially an outdoor dog, but with being inside for several days, I'm not sure I'll be able to leave her outside anymore. I sure hope so, because the indoor cats weren't crazy about her being in the house with them. She might have been feeling rotten, but she still tried to get them to play with her, and they weren't having any of it!

On a more positive note, I received my new bookmarks that our publicist had made for my booksignings coming up next month. I still don't have my author's copies of Fugitive yet, but I know they've been printed because a reviewer in Australia has one. Here's the link to her review on Veiled Secrets Reviews. She gave Fugitive five silver dragons and told me she stayed up all night reading it.

I guess that's a good thing, huh?

Sunday's Hunk of the Day!

Only five shopping days left until Christmas! Better get going!

Or not.

You might want to spend your lazy Sunday morning with Levi, instead.

Lots of room in that bed....

I'm blogging on Wickedly Romantic today, feeling rather introspective after a day spent visiting with some folks I don't see very often.

Fugitive is also in the running for book of the week on Whipped Cream Reviews. Here's the link to cast your vote! http://www.longandshortreviews.com/WC/recentrev.htm

Saturday's Hunk of the Day!

Since we seem to be on a Levi Poulter kick this week, he'll be doing the honors this weekend, too.

Photo courtesy of Sharon.

Enjoy the day!

Not feeling quite so peachy....

I wrapped most of my Christmas gifts last night and I'm surprised how quickly I got it done. Of course, as I write this, the mess is still there in the kitchen. I'll get it cleaned up eventually, but procrastination is becoming my strong suit these days.

Good thing I checked the scheduled posts for the rest of this week, however--because there weren't any! I thought I would add a little something to today's post (whatever it was) and popped in here to do that, and, lo and behold! There were none. No Saturday and Sunday hunks or anything! It's fortunate that Sharon sent me some new hunks or I'd have to go hunting.

I've taken a few days off from writing to actually, you know, work? What a concept! Sometimes the hours spent in the ICU are less demanding than when I'm at home. We had our unit Christmas party Tuesday night, and then hit the ground running when we got to work. Our census has been down forever, but it came back with a bang on Monday. The hospital is running at capacity, which is good for the job security, but not so good when you aren't used to it.

I've been doing a bit of nursing at home, too. As some of you may know, Peaches the puppy has been sick for several days, and I took her back to the vet yesterday morning. They're going to keep her for a while, and I sure hope they can get her well. I miss her already.

You don't realize just how much (or how quickly) a pet can become a part of your life. She's only been with us since September 21st, but going to the barn yesterday afternoon without her was very strange. Her toys were scattered all over the yard, her house and her dish were empty, but Snake and Black Cat were there on the porch to greet me when I went out. Kittycat was waiting in the nectarine tree and together they all escorted me to the barn just in case I'd forgotten how to get there without Peaches to lead the way. Snake has been AWOL for the past week or so. Interesting that she'd come back just when the dog went to the hospital. Maybe she doesn't like Peaches as much as we thought, or she might have been wondering where she was. Don't you wish they could talk?

I'll check in on her today, but she'll probably be at the vet's at least until Monday.

*sigh* It's going to be a long weekend....

Graduation Day!

Here's a little Levi to help Leslie celebrate graduating from nursing school!

Yay!!!

Having been through that myself, I can relate to the feelings of relief, trepidation, and accomplishment you are probably experiencing, Leslie. I had fun when I was in school, but it was also a lot of hard work and more studying than I ever hope to do again!

Let's all join in and wish Leslie a great career and may she save many lives and touch many others.

Wish I'd had someone like Levi to help me party after graduation. As I recall, it was pretty tame. . . .

Whopping Weasel Wednesday!

Well, at least there's a face to go along with this one. . . .

Tasty Tuesday

Here's another great recipe from Donna. You can tell how much fun she had making these cookies, can't you?

Choco-Coco Pecan Crisps

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 stick of butter

1 egg

1 tsp. vanilla

1 1/2 cup flour

1 cup chopped pecans

1/3 cup cocoa powder

1/2 tsp. baking soda

1 cup coconut

Beat brown sugar and butter until light and fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Combine flour, baking soda, cocoa,pecans. Stir into butter mixture to form stiff dough. Sprinkle coconut on hard working surface. Divide dough in 4 parts. Shape each into a log about 1 1/2 inches thick and about 5 to 7 inches long. Roll in coconut and Wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour or up to 2 days. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Cut rolls into 1/8 inch slices; place ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 13 minutes (Mine our done at 10). remove to wire racks to cool.

Enjoy!!! Makes about 5- 6 dozen small cookies.

Tired Writers and Monday Moons!

For one terrifying minute there I thought I'd exhausted my supply of buns pics! As I scrolled through my collection, there were some that I wasn't even sure if I'd used before. It's pretty bad when you're so brain dead you can't tell one great ass from another, but such is the case.

However, when I typed in Levi's name, it didn't automatically pop up, so I know he hasn't graced the blog as yet. His front side doesn't look too bad, either.

Want to see more of him?

I'm still not finished with the guest blogs for Fugitive, and I'm very glad they aren't due for a few weeks because I got stuck on the last one and haven't recovered as yet.

In an effort to take a break from the blogs and refresh my mind, I decided to relax one evening this past week and watch a movie in bed. Now, this isn't something I normally do (there's not even a TV in my bedroom) and when I asked Sam for his portable DVD player, he looked at me aghast and asked, "Are you sick?" My response was that, no, I wasn't sick, just very tired. So while he dug out his DVD player, I took a shower and then got all cozy in my bed and watched "A Good Year" with good ol' Russell Crowe.

If I was surprised that I didn't fall asleep during the movie, that's nothing compared to the reaction I received from my guys. My DH came in and asked why I wasn't watching it in the living room. Then later on, Sam checked up on me to see if I was feeling better. He gets worried when I don't do things I usually do. There was a time when he couldn't go to sleep if I wasn't in my own bed reading, but now I have to be in front of my computer or something is wrong with me. And if I don't cook supper, he really thinks I'm messed up. The lack of consistency offends his autistic sensibilities, I suppose.

Anyway, I think I may freak them out again and watch another movie later on. Maybe if I do it often enough, it won't seem so strange.

Nope, won't get to do it tonight. I just remembered that I'm blogging on Casablanca Authors today. Guess I'd better get busy and write it, huh?

Sunday's Hunk of the Day!

He looks almost apologetic, doesn't he?


I wonder why. . . .



I'm blogging on Wickedly Romantic today. Come on over!

Saturday's Hunk of the Day!

Ahhh. . . .


Can you feel the heat?

Hero RULES!!!!

I received word that the revisions to Hero have been accepted and it will go on to the copyeditor next week as planned.

Can you hear my sigh of relief from wherever you are?

You should. The absolute last thing any author needs is an emergency rewrite with Christmas just around the corner.

I think I'll put up my tree tonight and have a screaming orgasm to celebrate.


You know, the kind you make with Bailey's, Kahlua, and vodka?

Peaches' First Snow!

This is what we woke up to on Monday morning. It was pretty enough for us, but Peaches had never seen snow before. She seemed to take it in stride until we tried to play fetch with a snowball and she was digging around like, "I know this is where it landed. It has to be here!"

























By mid afternoon, however, it was just a memory. As I write this (on Tuesday evening) it's cold, rainy, windy, and nasty and all I want to do is sit by my fire with a cup of tea. Peaches is snug in her dog house and my pot of white chicken chili is simmering on the stove and I'm thinking of taking the evening off.

Nah, still have blogs to write.

Nice try, though.

Whopping Weasel Wednesday!

I normally don't like to post a dick without a face (that sounds weird, I know) but this time, I must make an exception for this exceptional tool. It's even got a little joy juice on it.

I'm sure his face is just as nice as the rest of him.

I'm still writing blogs for Fugitive. Eight down, four to go. . . .

Tasty Tuesday Fudge Surprise!

This is the fudge recipe I mentioned in last Tuesday's comments. As you can see, the quantities are large enough for gift giving, so if you're only making it for yourself, you might want to cut it down a bit.

Or you could share it with Benji! He looks sort of hungry to me. I think I would enjoy cooking for him.

No, wait. . . I like to cook no matter who eats it. Feeding Benji would just be icing on the cake. . . or the fudge.


Fudge Surprise

4 lb powdered sugar
1 cup cocoa
3 cups chopped pecans
1 lb pasteurized process cheese cut into pieces (Velveeta)
2 cups butter cut up into pieces
1 tbsp vanilla

Sift sugar and cocoa into a large bowl, stir in pecans. Melt cheese in double boiler, stir frequently and add butter until melted. Add vanilla. Add cheese mixture to sugar and mix well. Press into 10 1/2 X 15 1/2 jelly roll pan. Cover and chill until firm. Cut into 1 inch squares. Store in air tight container in cool place. Makes 12 1/2 dozen pieces.

Tattooed Monday Moons!

Whew! What a weekend! After shopping all day Saturday, I spent the evening catching up on emails and cleaning up that mess in the kitchen that I blogged about on Wickedly Romantic. Budley gave me a hand, but it was still challenge.

Sunday I worked on cleaning off the kitchen counter. I have a huge kitchen with all kinds of counter space, but you know how it is, that space is like a magnet for things you don't know what else to do with. Some of the things I threw away had to have been twenty years old. You know the kind of thing I mean: owner's manuals for appliances that no longer exist, recipe clippings that may have looked good at one time, but now I'm wondering, WTF???

Of course, back in the days when my diet was less of a concern and I made bread and pies and cookies and cobblers and jam all the time, I collected lots of recipes. I could probably pitch everything but a select few cookbooks and never miss them. Most of them are just there to collect dust and help the others stand up!

I get most of my new recipes from the internet nowadays, and I print them up and put them in a binder (which is almost full) but there are a good many of them that I've never actually used. I keep collecting them, though, and I did find the one for fudge made with Velveeta, which I will post tomorrow.

This is totally off the subject, but the Cat Master must be getting gutsier. When I asked Lance, the manager at Borders, what I needed to do besides show up for the signing in January, his response was: Self Promote. He even suggested that I contact a reporter from the local newspaper about an interview.

Now, we've been through all of this and you know how hard it is for me, but as I write this blog, I have just sent that email. I probably sounded really stupid, because I wasn't sure which reporter to send it to, and neither was Lance. I even looked at the website to discover the correct person, and though I came away unenlightened, I did get an email address, so at least I don't have to sound stupid on the phone. Fingers crossed that I sent it to the right guy.

Too bad it isn't today's hunk. Now, that would be an interview worth blogging about! Pinch him, Ana. We need to know if those buns are real.

Sunday's Hunk of the Day!

Here's a little something to warm up your winter.

Though I suppose that could be snow.

Nah, it's got to be sand!


I'm on Wickedly Romantic today. Come on over!

Saturday's Hunk of the Day!

Here's another of those Scandinavian guys from that site Donna sent me to a while back.


He's such a tease!


I'm on Casablanca Authors today. Come on over!

Happy Anniversary!

Today is the first anniversary of this blog. So, for that reason, I think we need several hunks, don't you?

Some oldies but goodies!

Thank you to all who have supported the blog this past year. I think we can all say we've had fun!